Partners In Crime (Formerly Ghosts In Crime)
by TsukikoUchu
Summary: Sakura can talk to Hashirama and Kushina's ghosts and they cause mischief and trouble for her all the time, but they are insanely protective over her and can take command of her body especially when someone hunts Sakura from a young age Sakura/Multi Pairing Don't like how I write my story or the things i write, don't read it, eventual revivals just a few (Name Change)
1. Prologue

When she was born she could see people, not the regular types of people, the see through, ghosts basically, they always hung around, her parents thought there was something wrong with her laughing at things that weren't there.

This was followed by many visits to a medic and even visits to a Yamanaka, who delved into her brain with his jutsu to figure out what was wrong, nothing, she was perfectly normal, she could just see dead people, two to be precise.

At age five she even knew their names Hashirama Senju and Kushina Uzumaki, they could manifest themselves just a little and touch physical things, even take over her body briefly to release some of their pent up frustration.

Like when she entered the academy and that little girl Ami Himekari picked on her larger than life forehead, Kushina took command of her body "DON'T PICK ON MY FOREHEAD YOU KNOW" and punched the other girl.

Followed by the other girls in the class avoiding her like the plague and Kushina pouting for a week as the young Sakura Haruno ignored her until Hashirama managed to get the girl they were attached to, to forgive the Uzumaki or she would never stop pouting.

It wasn't the last time she was angry with the ghost's that were somehow attached to her, they caused trouble for her everywhere she went, Hashirama called them her Ghost's in Crime, for all the mischief they managed on a regular basis she could believe him.

Take for instance when she was seven and she'd finally made a friend only at Kushina's insistence, the blonde boy in class with the brightest blue eyes she'd ever seen, and with Hashirama egging her on, they both played a prank that landed them detention for a week.

Her friend didn't care either way "You were totally awesome Sakura-chan believe it" Naruto flashed her a whiskered grin as they wrote their lines which were I mustn't play pranks on my academy sensei, over and over again until their hands ached something fierce.

But they went home with the knowledge that they would be hanging out again the next day, or when Sasuke became cold towards everyone and she tried to cheer him up only to be shoved away, "He's just sad because of what happened" Hashirama would say, when she was eight.

Not that Sakura understood it in the least, but she tried her best to stay out of the Uchiha's way after that to avoid upsetting him, not like the other idiotic girls in her class, who fawned over the boy missing his irritated glares not that they paid him any mind.

Less than a month later Sakura befriended a young girl who claimed she'd run away from home and that she wouldn't go back no matter what, her name was Karin and Kushina was one hundred percent certain the girl was an Uzumaki.

So at the two ghost's insistence after learning just what happened that caused the girl to run away from her village, Sakura taught Karin regular medical ninjutsu, for two weeks things went well before he came.

Kan Kuki had been sent to retrieve their runaway and when he saw the two girls practicing, took them both, it made for a hellish week for Sakura, because two days after their abduction when they were alone in the clearing, Karin suggested they make a break for it.

They did things didn't end well and Sakura found herself tied down while her friend was carted off by another Grass Shinobi and she really thought she was going to die, Kan went so far as to even do something more despicable than she could have imagined before leaving her to die.

It wasn't more than an hour later she was found, though she'd long since lost consciousness and when she woke she was in the hospital, it took her two weeks to recover properly and for several months after she was depressed mourning the loss of her friend.

And when she was nine Sakura thought for sure that an adult was going to strangle her as she skipped lessons at the academy to hang out with Kiba Inuzuka of all people "Come on run faster if you don't want to get caught" Kiba urged as they dashed down the streets.

Ducking into random alleys to loose Iruka-sensei who was tailing them to bring them back to class and punish them "Need a little help Sakura-chan" Kushina asked floating along after the girl, finding the situation funny as all hell.

Like the other ghost who was attached to the young girl "How will she learn the art of detection if we help her" Hashirama for all his silliness and sometimes ridiculous antics, was wise, he was the First Hokage after all.

Kushina sulked but fell silent to the girl's relief as the two nine year old's skidded to a halt and used an illusion tag to cover their tracks, Iruka sped past their hiding place "Totally awesome, guess hanging out with that Uzumaki kid definitely has it's perks sometimes" the Inuzuka Heir commented.

Sakura grinned "Naruto's pretty creative with his pranks, though sometimes I can come up with one that tops his" the pinkette exclaimed leaving out the fact that the ghosts that followed her were the masterminds behind many of her various pranks during the two years she'd befriended Naruto.

Not that she believed anyone would believe her if she told them, so kept their presence secret, as if she would reveal her ace, one of the rules of a shinobi was to always have the element of surprise, Hashirama and Kushina would definitely be a surprise after all.

Her statement earned an amused look from two said ghosts "Yeah that's cause you have a lot of help Sakura-chan" Hashirama boasted laughing boisterously like usual, though the sound of his laughter only reached the nin year old girls ears and Kushina's.

Who whacked the man over the head "Stuff it Hashirama, sometimes Sakura-chan can come up with her own prank idea that's just as awesome as our idea's you know" Kushina huffed causing Hashirama to become depressed like usual as she won at their arguments.

The girl in question was tempted to shake her head at the duo, but didn't because she didn't want to come off as crazy "So now that we've avoided Iruka-sensei, what do you want to do for the rest of the day Sakura" Kiba drew her attention back onto him.

And she considered the idea for a short time "My parents gave me lunch money, it's almost lunch, let's go get dango, then sneak down to my hideout for the rest of the day until it's time to go home" Sakura suggested in the next moment.

So that's what they did, they got their dango and hightailed it into the forest avoiding Iruka-sensei who was snooping around for them still, sliding around several Jonin Class shinobi and dashed into Sakura's hideout, it was home away from home for her.

On days that her two ghost companions weren't urging her to play pranks or skip the academy, which wasn't very often Sakura buckled down with her two erstwhile friends, Naruto and Kiba and helped them with their homework, which improved their academics quite a bit.

That their grades massively improved and Iruka couldn't find it in himself to complain about the various pranks or how the trio managed to hide from him when they skipped classes, so long as they were actually doing their homework and doing detentions that he set without complaint.

Until the whole lot of them were ten, by that point at Kushina's demand once again a new friend joined their group, in the red head's defense and when asked "She's just to cute to wither away in the background" Kushina huffed every single time.

Gesturing to the short blue haired girl with lavender eyes signaling her origins of Hyuga descent "Whatever you say Kushina" Hashirama shook his head, learning to finally duck when the woman took a swing at him, despite being a ghost, getting whacked still hurt.

So that's how Hinata Hyuga came to join their little group of friends and Kushina was even more thrilled to find the girl had a crush on her son "You want me to what" Sakura asked of her ghost's in crime in complete and utter disbelief.

It was after academy let out for the day and the two ghosts had ushered her into an alley where a sound proofing tag had been set up to avoid people thinking her insane as she talked to the air "Set Naruto-kun and Hinata-chan up on a date" the red head impatiently explained.

"Kushina-chan you realize we're still only ten, well Naruto, he's still nine, we're to young" the pinkette couldn't believe her ears, plus even if she tried that, Hinata would only blush beet red and faint, which would lead to even more problems that she didn't want to deal with.

The red head started pouting "You have to admit she's right Kushina, they are still children" the brunette nodded in agreement with the girl his spiritual body was attached to, though it would prevent anyone from using the reanimation jutsu on him, hopefully.

He didn't really understand the mechanics of that very well if he was being honest, the woman let out a depressed sigh "I didn't say I wouldn't do it Kushina-chan, but it won't be a date, more like a regular hang out" Sakura finally relented.

Not sure how she got stuck with two crazy ghosts that drove her insane on a daily basis, violet eyes lit up "Thank you Sakura-chan you're the best you know" Kushina pumped her arm in victory hugging the young ten year old girl.

It really was the oddest sensation to be hugged by a ghost, but Sakura had long since grown use to the feeling "Right if you don't want to be late for dinner Sakura-chan, you should hurry" Hashirama reminded, taking note of the time.

Sakura hastily took down her sound proofing tag, that she'd created with the help of the Uzumaki woman, who was definitely skilled in the art of fuinjutsu, though she learned that on her own time, and dashed down the streets towards home.

Where her parents were waiting for her, dinner already set up at the table "Were you hanging out with your friends Sakura, is that why you're almost late" Mebuki questioned as they all sat down to eat supper that she'd made.

"Mhm that's right Mom, might have dinner with my friends at the tea shop tomorrow if that's alright" she hummed omitting the truth just a little bit, technically the two ghosts attached to her were her friends, her parents didn't need to know that.

"And you aren't causing trouble for your sensei again are you" Kizashi chuckled, his daughter was a devious one, but bright and astute as well, a perfect mixture of both of them really, then it was time for bed and the Haruno House settled down.

The next day after academy let out, Kiba, Naruto, Sakura and Hinata traipsed to the tea house for dinner under the watchful eye of a couple of Hyuga's and some Jonin to make sure the kids weren't getting into trouble, while Kushina watched on hearts in her eyes and Hashirama an amused smile on his lips.

Beyond causing trouble for her and being mischievous, the two ghosts taught her other things besides fuinjutsu, like a proper taijutsu form, throwing skills, even her elemental nature, which turned out to be tricky, and a little bit of medical ninjutsu.

So that she was prepared for the life of a ninja, not only did she have to learn how to fight at the demand of her two ghosts in crime, Kushina taught her dancing and how to incorporate that into her fighting style, and Hashirama taught her the true history of their village how it came to be.

Until it was finally time for them to graduate from the academy, after bumping up from kunoichi in training to kunoichi and a genin, Sakura's life became ten times worse, she didn't know how much hell she would be through, but if it was anything like her earlier years, it was sure to be crazy thanks to her ghosts in crime.


	2. Meeting the Sensei

It was the day after academy graduation exams and she was getting ready to go back to the academy for the last time _"Oooh maybe you'll meet some dreamy prince"_ Kushina definitely wasn't helping as she got dressed.

The male ghost conspicuously absent that is until all of her clothes were on then he floated through the floor _"Must you insist on wearing that distasteful outfit"_ Hashirama shook his head seeing the bright colors.

She sighed "My mother got it for me, once I have some mission pay saved up I'll switch to dark colors I know the importance of being able to blend in Hashirama-san" Sakura assured undecided on where to put her headband.

Before deciding to tie it loosely around her neck "Sakura your going to be late" Mebuki's voice hollered at the bottom of the stairs, Sakura blew out a breath, situated her pouches onto her body, then hurried down the steps.

"Good luck Sakura-chan and make sure you bring your team sometime so that we can meet them and get to know them" Kizashi called as she sped by, giving her parents a hug, then was out the door her two ghost companions floating leisurely after her.

As she rushed down the streets before taking to the roofs to get to the academy faster _"I wonder if your sensei will be handsome"_ the red head sighed wistfully, reminiscing on the past, twelve long years had gone by since she'd died leaving her cute little son all alone.

Until her soul had become anchored to one Sakura Haruno _"That would be wrong, he would be her sensei and doesn't need to fraternize with his student, who is a girl, perhaps you'll have a female sensei, that would be better"_ the brunette pointed out, hoping that was the case.

Sakura glanced over her shoulder at him before shrugging "Can't help it if I get a male sensei, but I definitely am not going to pursue him Kushina-chan" the pinkette lowered her voice as she spoke, then leaped to the ground landing gracefully on her feet.

Those dance lessons were definitely paying off "Forehead what the hell, where did you come from" Ino gaped at the girl that had punched her best friend on the first day at the start of their academy days as she dropped down in front of her.

This earned a blank look, followed by the only pink haired girl in existence pointing to the roof she'd just jumped down from "Are you crazy forehead, you could seriously hurt yourself doing that" the Yamanaka Heiress shrieked like a banshee.

Which was followed by an annoyed snort "Damn shrieking banshee would you quit it, your making my ears bleed" Kiba Inuzuka had arrived, ninken perched atop his head, who let out a yip of agreement in response.

"And if you don't mind could you move out of the way, we'd like to get through isn't that right Sakura, Akamaru" the Inuzuka Heir crossed his arms and lifted a brow, the girl rushed through the doors leaving the two friends alone.

Only for them to follow after her a couple seconds later "Nice one Kiba, though I still say Ino-pig is definitely an apter nickname" Sakura grinned from ear to ear, reaching up and plucking Akamaru from her friend's head and stroking her fingers through his fur.

"You have your opinion I have mine, by the way who do you think will be on your team, or mine for that matter" the brunette questioned, keeping pace with his friend as they walked to their old academy sensei classroom for the last time.

Sakura considered the question while ignoring the helpful exclamations of her two ghosts, because Kushina butt in that Naruto had to be on her team and Hashirama argued that it might not happen but that Sasuke Uchiha would definitely be on the team considering their skills and intelligence.

"Maybe Naruto and Sasuke for me, while Hinata-chan and Shino-san for you" the pinkette finally relented and said the names of both boys to appease her ghost companions as they both looked at her with imploring looks that basically told her choose.

And she did, now they couldn't argue "Guess that's not so bad, though good luck with that stuck up Uchiha if you get him" the Inuzuka Heir snorted as they entered the classroom and chose spots with their other two friends, so the four of them were all squished into the same row.

Ignoring the looks they received all the while "Good Morning Sakura-chan, D…Kiba" Naruto grinned from ear to ear flashing them all beaming smiles, sporting his headband on his forehead like most others except for the two girls in their group.

Who chose to place theirs around their necks "I..I wonder who we're going to be put on a t..team with" Hinata stuttered lightly, her confidence had grown in leaps and bounds becoming friends with the three of them, which made the red haired ghost downright ecstatic.

"Come on Hinata-chan, we'll be together some way shape or form" the blonde bounced exuberantly in his seat, causing their classmates to give him annoyed looks until a tick formed above the Pink Haired Demon as she'd been nicknamed during their academy days.

For those who'd dare piss her off or hurt her friends, they were met with a furious shriek of ~YOU KNOW~ and whatever else was said before being punched solidly off their feet with a tightly clenched fist, hence the nickname.

"B..But what if w..we're not" the blue haired Hyuga Heiress blurted out worried that she wasn't going to get to see her friends anymore once they were assigned teams and had to go on missions, which would separate them.

As close to a panic attack as she was going to get, it was time for Sakura to sweep in "Chances are one of us will be assigned on a team with you Hinata-chan don't worry so much" the pinkette soothed letting her chakra leak out and seep gently into the taller girl in order to help her relax.

It wasn't more than a minute later that the girl slumped her shoulders completely content to sit there for awhile and not get worked up _"Nice one Sakura-chan, you've definitely improved on that little trick I taught you last year"_ the spirit of the First Hokage flashed her a thumbs up.

" _That's because Sakura-chan has perfect chakra control baka Hashirama"_ the Uzumaki woman harrumphed wrapping her arms around the preteen girl, who didn't so much as flinch at the feeling, so use to it that it didn't bother her in the least anymore.

Before anymore could be said between the group of friends and the two ghosts, the Chunin who'd taught them for the last seven years entered the classroom and walked smoothly to the podium at the front of the room.

"Congratulations on becoming official genin, I'm proud of all of you for making it here today, now you will find out who is to be on your genin teams" Iruka cleared his throat speaking calmly then glanced down at the clipboard in his hands.

And started rattling off the number of their teams, followed by the three genin that would be on the squad until he got to the known group of friends "Team Eight, Kiba Inuzuka, Hinata Hyuga, Shino Aburame that is all" the brunette said.

Quickly moving on which was Team Ten, Ino Yamanaka, Shikamaru Nara, and Choji Akimichi, everyone had a good laugh at that "And finally Team Seven, Naruto Uzumaki, Sakura Haruno, Sasuke Uchiha that is all" the Chunin finished.

"Why the hell is that bastard on our team" the Uzumaki blurted out angrily, not wanting to be anywhere near the Uchiha, let alone have him near his Sakura-chan, who was to kind hearted for her own good and would try to play nice in which he wanted no part of.

The only pink haired girl in existence sighed, it was just her luck to get those two _"At least I was partially right that my Naruto-kun would be on your team Sakura-chan"_ Kushina gave a pleased as punch smile, now she wouldn't have to worry about what her boy was getting up to on his own.

" _And I was right myself how Sasuke would also be on your team, the three of you together could become the powerhouses of your generation, that could rival Tsuna-chan and her teammates back in the day, who came to be known as the legendary sannin"_ Hashirama ranted.

Earning a long suffering sigh as the girl they were speaking to, tuned into the argument that was happening between her teammates "Yeah like I want to be on a team with you two losers anyway, always causing trouble for the people around you" the Uchiha spat angrily.

Pointing an accusing finger in their direction "Go..Good luck Sakura-chan" Hinata wisely got out of range of the ensuing argument, and hurried towards her second male teammate, while the first one stayed to get his usual daily amusement.

Not sympathetic in the least "Now you've got both of them on your team, I think you jinxed yourself Sakura" Kiba shook his head watching on as the girl sitting between him and the Uzumaki boy, gained an angry tick on her forehead.

"L..Loser, just who the hell do you think your calling a loser Sasuke Uchiha, when I scored higher than you in every class and managed to tie with you during physical lessons" the pinkette rose to her feet emerald eyes glaring murderously at her teammate.

Who realized that it hadn't been such a good idea to mouth off to the Pink Haired Demon of all people and insult her, nor could he argue with her because she was right, in fact with a little more training she could become even better than him it wasn't really fair.

Iruka sighed and left the classroom hoping that it wouldn't be destroyed as the genin waited for their Jonin Instructors back in the classroom, the Uchiha shrunk back feeling the KI wafting from his teammate in waves, and decided against arguing further.

Cause he definitely didn't want to get cracked over the back of the head with her fist _"You tell him Sakura-chan, that will teach that jerk not to insult you"_ Kushina was so, so proud of the girl, and that time she hadn't even had to take over the girls body to inflict damage to the idiotic boy.

On her other side was Hashirama shaking his head _"You three are going to be teammates for most of your career you should try to at least get along"_ Hashirama sighed looking tired all of a sudden, it was an Uchiha, one of the last out of three left in existence.

He certainly didn't want the boy turning into another Madara after all "I think Teme gets your point Sakura-chan, so you can sit down now" Naruto shot fearful looks at his teammate, not wanting the boy to get pummeled after all.

Though at the statement the boy nodded "Exactly, plus your right, your the only one who managed to beat me on lessons and tie with me during physical" Sasuke said offhandedly not wanting to admit that KI had him on edge.

Until it was suppressed "Good so long as you understand Sasuke, we are going to be teammates and we should all learn to get along" Sakura repeated the line that she'd been told many times over the years, it was something that had become ingrained in her.

Thanks to one of her ghost companions, both of whom let out sighs of relief that the classroom had escaped unscathed, while the three newly promoted genin got comfortable in their seats, being the last ones that hadn't met their sensei, to wait for his/her arrival.

That was until three hours had passed and Naruto was growing bored much like Sasuke and Sakura were, but were able to reign in their boredom a little better than Naruto could "Hehehe this will teach him not to be late" the blonde couldn't sit still any longer.

And decided to set up a prank for their extremely late sensei "He's a Jonin Dope, he's not going to fall for such a stupid prank" the raven haired boy on the team pointed out bluntly as the boy stood on a stool and wedged a chalk eraser between the door and the wall.

"Yeah, though your forgetting Sasuke, Naruto, Kiba and I played pranks on Chunin level ninja all the time, though that one is way to obvious, if you want to prank sensei, you should try a different tactic" the pinkette ticked off her fingers.

Kushina and Hashirama were smug about that _"Don't grow up anymore Sakura-chan, I remember when you were just a little thing only a few days old"_ the brunette sniffled overcome with emotions and of the first time she'd seen them.

" _Baka Hashirama, she's gonna grow up with or without our permission, go off and get a handsome boyfriend, get married and have children all of her own"_ the red head sobbed giving the girl a bone crushing hug.

It was definitely felt and the girls emerald eyes widened imperceptibly just as a hand appeared through the crack of the sliding door and it slid open to reveal the most wackiest looking Jonin any of them had laid eyes upon, except for Kushina, her violet eyes widened in shock at the sight of him.

She'd never thought he of all people would be her sweet Naruto-kun and Sakura-chan's sensei, it hadn't even occurred to her that it might be possible and this was the first time she'd laid eyes on him since the incident and he'd definitely grown up, which made her doubly sad cause she'd missed out.

To their surprise the chalk board eraser fell on his head "I can't believe you fell for it" the Uzumaki boy cracked up laughing as he realized his prank had indeed worked, though he didn't realize that the man had fallen for it on purpose.

Sakura put her head in her hands "Why are you so late anyway" the only pink haired girl in existence was the one to ask, but he was still looking at them with his lone onyx eyes, headband tilted sideways on his head.

"Lame what kind of Jonin are you to fall for that stupid prank" the Uchiha on the team was less than impressed with his sensei or who was supposed to be his sensei, but was turning out to be a joke and had made them wait three hours.

He blinked at them "My first impression of all of you…..I hate you" the silver haired nin commented in an everyday tone and their eyes widened, just before that angry tick formed above a certain someones eye.

"What did you say, how could you say you hate us when you've known us for less than five minutes that is so not cool YOU KNOW" the Uzumaki woman definitely didn't like what had become of her cute little Kakashi-kun and took over control of the girls body.

Then lunged fist aimed right at his masked face, the two boys on her team stared in horror as their sensei dodged the attack and their sole female teammate slammed into the podium, barely denting it before the girl managed to wrangle back control of her body.

"Reckless Kushina, you could have gotten Sakura-chan in trouble for that" the First Hokage commented, though he was just as angry, a Jonin was supposed to lead his genin with a firm yet stern hand, not go around saying horrible things only moments after meeting them.

Back in control of her body and sending an imperceptible look at the ghost that meant she was angry with the woman, which caused her to immediately start pouting like usual as she realized she was in trouble with their friend that their souls were attached to.

As she rose to her feet carefully wincing a little bit at the ache, it always caused some discomfort on her part when the two ghosts took over, but the woman had been a little more forceful than usual and it had taken a lot of concentration to take control back from her.

"Now lets go up to the roof" the Copy Ninja was definitely wary, he hadn't thought the girl would go completely berserk from one little statement he'd made, but it was that familiar verbal tick that had him seriously confused, because only one person should be using it.

At the order they all traipsed up to the roof and sat down "Right then let's introduce ourselves, likes/dislikes, dreams for the future, I'll go first, Kakashi Hatake, thinks I like I don't feel like telling you, hobbies nothing in particular, dream not telling you" Kakashi introduced himself.

" _Let me at him Sakura-chan so I can beat him to a bloody pulp, how dare he act so arrogant and smug in front of me not cool you know"_ Kushina bellowed itching to punch the man that was unrecognizable to herself.

The other ghost let out a long suffering sigh _"You can't hurt him Kushina, neither could Sakura-chan if you took over her body, she is a genin, and no match for him at her current level"_ Hashirama explained to the scowling woman.

While the girl in question ignored their presence and conversation "Not cool sensei, you only told us your name, whatever, Sakura Haruno, I like reading, training and hanging out with my friends, I dislike bullies, my hobby is learning about our history, for my dream can't say for sure" Sakura went first.

Followed by her friend "Naruto Uzumaki, like all things ramen, dislike jerks and bullies like Sakura-chan, hobbies are eating different kinds of ramen and my dream is to become the future Hokage" Naruto rattled off.

Now it was their last remaining teammates turn "Sasuke Uchiha, I don't particular like anything or dislike anything, hobby is training and what I have is not a dream, but a goal I will destroy a certain someone" Sasuke scoffed thinking this whole thing beneath him no doubt.

"Wonderful, tomorrow we'll have our first training exercise meet on training grounds seven at five sharp, oh and don't eat or you'll puke" the silver haired nin crinkled his eye at his little genin before disappearing in a puff of smoke.

Naruto definitely freaked out about that "Why did sensei say that, is he trying to scare us" the blonde ran around in a panic trying to make sense of the words his sensei had told them, only to become even more confused.

Sakura sighed "He probably intends on running us ragged and by not eating we'll have less energy, I would completely ignore that order and eat anyway" the pinkette commented almost sure that he was trying to mess with them.

Off to the side Sasuke scoffed under his breath "Right whatever" the raven haired boy rolled his eyes, then was gone leaving the two friends on their own with the ghosts that only one of them could see, not that anyone would find about the duo anyway.

" _I bet Kakashi is going to put you through the bell test, there will only be two bells and the key to the exercise is teamwork"_ the red head huffed knowing that man inside and out, he wouldn't catch her sweet little Sakura-chan or Naruto-kun off guard if she had her way.

Hashirama coughed _"Let us return to the house then you still have your extra lessons to sit through after all"_ the brunette reminded and jade eyes flashed surreptitiously in his direction, not that the blonde realized it.

With that the two friends split up, only to meet up on the training grounds their sensei told them to meet up on and surprise, surprise the man was yet again late by three hours, it sort of ticked them off quite a bit.

Until he went about explaining the exercise he'd set up Kushina's violet eyes lit up in triumph "That doesn't fool me Kakashi-sensei, it's a trap to pit us against each other to make us fail cause there's only two bells, well I won't fall for it, I'd rather go back to the academy then abandon my friends" Sakura exclaimed.

Both boys on her team shot her weird looks as their sensei started at her in complete and utter disbelief that his little exercise had been beaten before it had even begun "What makes you say that Sakura-chan" Kakashi frowned beneath his cloth mask.

"Cause we're teammates and no matter what sort of rule there is we refuse to leave our comrades behind, we'd rather be scum for breaking the rules, than have a teammate die on us if we could help him to prevent that" Naruto recited.

Then the two glanced to their remaining teammate "What they said, if their not here then I quit" Sasuke crossed his arms broodily like usual, not sure what the whole fuss was about anyway but going along with his teammates antics.

" _I am so proud of you Sakura-chan, you are a good student"_ Hashirama ruffled the girls hair, timing it just right so that it seemed like the breeze messed up the shiny pink locks of Sakura's hair, he didn't want the girl to get sent to T&I after all _._

Off to the side was the other ghost _"Cause we taught her that's what makes her so good"_ Kushina praised sticking her tongue out at Kakashi, who stood there staring at the three genin as if he'd never seen them before.

When in reality he'd check up on two of the boys a lot over the years, it was the girl he was unfamiliar with, "Well in that case guess I have no choice but to pass you, so congratulations you pass" the silver haired nin sighed.

Not sure what to think "Did you hear that Sakura-chan we pass, we pass let's celebrate with ramen" the blonde danced around the clearing exuberantly as the words his sensei just told him clicked in his mind, that meant they were a team for good and wouldn't be sent back to the academy.

"Dope eating all that ramen is unhealthy for you" the raven haired boy on the team scoffed only to inch back warily as not one but two glares turned on him from both of his teammates, who apparently had a thing for ramen.

Sakura's eye twitched "If eaten the right way it can be healthy so don't insult ramen again if you know what's good for you, you know" the pinkette scowled fiercely channeling a little of Kushina's temper that had rubbed off on her over the years.

There was that verbal tick again and Kakashi cast her a critical look _"No good Sakura-chan, better be careful I think Kakashi-san is onto us"_ the brunette pointed out, knowing that he couldn't be seen, but he definitely didn't want the girl to get in trouble.

" _Ignore baka Hashirama, Sakura-chan it's not like they can do anything to you and besides you can always play the verbal tick off as hanging around Naruto-kun"_ the red head explained, it had occurred to her after all and it was the best idea that she could think up.

She nodded as they all split up for the day two of them going for ramen, while the others vanished to parts unknown, before it was time to go home after a quick training session for dinner, shower and finally bed time.


	3. The Kissing Escapades Begin Now

A month followed them all becoming genin and being assigned Jonin Sensei's _"I still say you should let me beat him to a pulp Sakura-chan, what's up with all these torturous D Rank Missions"_ Kushina complained for the millionth time about the D Ranked Missions.

The girl her and another soul was attached to let out a long suffering sigh _"D Rank's are important Kushina to establish experience before they can move up in rank and get better missions"_ Hashirama was quick to say, being wise it had been happening more and more often.

Earning a small glance "That's right and after this I'm definitely going to ask Kakashi-sensei if it's possible to do team training with another team, preferably Hinata-chan and Kiba's team" Sakura exclaimed happily clearing the trash from the river.

Quite a distance away from her teammates "Are you almost done down there Sakura-chan or do you need help" Naruto hurried in his sole female teammate's direction, it had definitely been a trying month that was for sure.

What with both of her teammates and the ghosts attached to her driving her to plead insanity, let's not forget her sensei's extremely late tendencies in which he gave them a very lame excuse "It's better if you let her handle that area on her own Dope" Sasuke snorted.

Naruto swung around ranting and raving "Now is not the time to be fighting boys unless you want more missions for the day" Kakashi warned from his spot in a tree, reading his little orange book, all three genin were curious about it, but he refused to tell them.

Sakura blew out a breath and wiped her forehead, glancing into the shallow river for anymore trash and not spotting any, "Hey Kakashi-sensei is training with another team allowed" the pinkette could resist asking.

"Of course it is Sakura-chan, there are three other Jonin sensei's, Kurenai in charge of Team Eight, Gai in charge of Team Gai and Asuma in charge of Team Ten, I could ask but why do you want to train with another team" the silver haired nin peered down at her curiously.

It was Naruto who answered "So that we can train with Hinata-chan and Kiba, like we use to back in the academy" the blonde blurted looking around for anymore trash and not seeing any so he left the river like his teammate had.

Followed by the last one on the team "Hn why those two, Hyuga's weak and Inuzuka is annoying, neither of them would pose much of a challenge for any of us even the Dope" the raven haired preteen scoffed dropping his sack full of trash.

Kushina's eye twitched _"I'll show you weak pretty boy, Hinata-chan has more of a chance to become strong and Kiba is satisfactory when he's not being all smug"_ the red head ranted and raved like her son had only moments before hand.

Making Hashirama shake his head _"And like usual none of them can even hear you except for Sakura-chan, so why do you even bother Kushina"_ the brunette rubbed a hand down his face heavily, he was dead and yet he still felt tired like he would as if he were alive.

"You know Sakura-chan I've been wondering, why do you say that verbal tick, you know, it always comes out when your angry, but surely Naruto-kun saying it, it wouldn't have rubbed off on you in just a few years right" the Copy Ninja was definitely curious.

Sakura's heart skipped a beat "That's right, why do you say it Sakura-chan, cause you've been saying it far longer than we've been friends" the Uzumaki boy piped in peering at her with his to blue eyes, that were nothing like she'd ever seen before.

The boy had her on that one _"Oh um shoot come on think Sakura-chan, think, I've got it say that you'd heard that someone used it around town and just picked up on it"_ the Uzumaki woman wracked her brains for something to use an excuse.

"I picked up on it in the village, heard someone I passed by say it once, it could have been Naruto for all I know, thought it was cool so it just stuck" the only pink haired girl in existence said smoothly in the next moment.

"And that is the lamest excuse I have ever heard, whatever so it's possible that we can train with another team if you ask right" the Uchiha on the team crossed his arms with another snort, but he was definitely interested in training with other genin, regardless of his proclamations.

Earning a glance from the lone onyx eye before Team Seven's Sensei nodded his head, then vanished in a swirl of leaves _"Well done Sakura-chan, you threw them off and that was surprisingly smart of you Kushina"_ the First Hokage commented praising both females.

Fifteen minutes later their sensei returned with confirmation of their training session with Team Eight, which would be the next day as they finished up with their D Rank Missions turned in their reports and split up for the rest of the day to do their own thing during their free time.

The next morning they all met on training grounds seven, and surprise, surprise Team Eight was already there with their sensei "Sakura this is great isn't it Yahoo" Kiba was definitely pumped up for the joint team training session.

"Don't forget we are here as well Kiba, why because we would also like to show off our improved skills" Shino stepped forward, glancing to the girl that definitely piqued his interest, not once had his insects ever bothered her so he was intrigued by her.

And he wanted to be the one to spar with her "M..Me to Sakura-chan, I..I've improved as well on my gentle fist style" Hinata piped in unable to resist letting her gaze trail in her crushes direction, but for once managed not to blush beet red or faint in his presence.

"So long as you don't go overboard Kiba and if this turns out well I'll definitely be scheduling more joint sessions between the eight of us" Kurenai scolded the boy with a puppy on his head gently, who yipped in agreement wagging his tail slowly back and forth.

"Right we're leaving who you spar against up to the lot of you, no major destructive jutsu's, keep it taijutsu and maybe a few weapons if used in moderation" Kakashi spoke up from off to the side, perched in his usual tree reading his little orange book, moments later Kurenai joined him.

Leaving the rest up to the six genin, who all looked imploringly at the emerald eyed girl for instruction "Okay how about we do pairings we're not use to, like Shino versus myself, Hinata-chan versus Sasuke and Naruto vs Kiba and switch it up next time" Sakura fidgeted.

It was definitely an idea "Guess Do…Kiba's not so bad a sparring partner, better watch out though Sasuke-teme, Hinata-chan can disable you really quick if your not careful" Naruto sniggered as he and his partner trudged a safe distance away from the others.

His statement was met with an obsidian glare and a scowl that was reminiscent of his fathers "Just you watch Dope, you'll be the first one to go down and when you do you have to give up ramen for a week" Sasuke grumbled under his breath.

Sakura sighed and rolled her eyes _"He's cute Sakura-chan, never noticed it before, perhaps after this you two can sneak away for a little rendezvous and get your first kiss"_ Kushina sighed dreamily thinking of her own first kiss which had been mind blowing.

Her face threatened to be engulfed in a blush _"Kushina now is not the time to be distracting Sakura-chan especially when she's about to train"_ Hashirama was quick to scold, shaking his head in exasperation at the woman's antics.

As the six genin settled into stances and launched at one another to begin their individual spars and an hour later contrary to what everyone thought Sasuke was the first one to lose his fight against a girl no less and it was no doubt a blow to his pride and ego.

Naruto didn't care and wasn't sympathetic in the least of his teammate currently letting out peals of laughter and rolling around on the ground "You did good Hinata" the Inuzuka Heir flashed Hinata thumbs up and Akamaru let out a bark of agreement.

Hinata blushed "Indeed, perhaps next time he won't underestimate you, why because you've improved as well as the rest of us have" the Aburame Heir tilted his head in acknowledgment of his own sparring partner, that he'd tied with.

"I..It was no..nothing just practice a lot is all" the blue haired Hyuga Heiress blushed lightly from the praise of her teammates but it was the beaming smile and whiskered grin being flashed her way that made it all worth it.

Regardless of Sasuke's sulking as he nursed his bruised pride "Very good Hinata, you'll make the Hyuga Clan proud, especially your father" the raven haired beauty that was Team Eight's sensei praised like her students had of the younger female on the team.

"Not only that but Sakura-chan was definitely skilled as well, being the only one who didn't lose against her opponent, so much for Sasuke being the number one rookie" the silver haired Jonin commented from his perch on the tree.

Sasuke's eye twitched "That's because she trains by herself, goes all out and gets home late in the evening" the blonde on the team outed his sole female teammate of her solo late night training sessions, that was only because she was being dragged there by her ghost's in crime.

"Wh..What are you bloody insane Sakura, don't you know how dangerous that is training by yourself at night" the raven haired boy whirled, forgetting for one second that he wasn't supposed to care, Sakura met his gaze evenly.

Emerald clashed with ebony "I can take care of myself just fine you know and besides it's still daylight when I train" the pinkette harrumphed putting a hand on her hip and glaring her teammate into submission, who definitely didn't want to get on her bad side.

She wasn't known as the Pink Haired Demon for nothing after all _"Sakura-chan, Kurenai and Kakashi-kun just dismissed you guys, if you don't hurry you won't get your first kiss from that cutie Shino"_ the red head urged Sakura forward suddenly after Shino.

Who ignored her presence for about three blocks until one of the ghosts following the girl couldn't resist from commenting _"Why did you make her follow him Kushina, it's obvious he is more of a loner than a talker, he didn't talk much during the spar after all"_ the brunette deadpanned.

It wasn't more than two blocks later that Shino finally spoke "Is there a reason your following me, why because usually you would run off to hang out withe either Naruto, Kiba or Hinata" the boy with brown hair inquired.

And they both came to a screeching halt "I hang out with those three all the time Shino, maybe I wanted to get to know you" the only pink haired girl in existence said lightly in an unsure tone of voice, feeling extremely awkward.

Especially when the boy in front of her raised a brow at her in consideration _"Oh for crying out loud Sakura-chan, lean forward and kiss him already, he's not going to so you have to make the first move"_ the Uzumaki woman ranted suddenly.

The other ghost attached to her shook his head yet again _"Perhaps she feels not ready, you can't force her Kushina if that's the case"_ the First Hokage explained gently as the two preteens stared at each other, though it was hard to tell in the boys case.

"Very well then I admit I am curious about you as well, why because you managed to get the two dunces of the academy to sit down and study for lessons, not only that but you reigned them in when needed" Shino finally nodded in acceptance to the request.

Jade eyes blinked at him in surprise "Yeah that's true, though I'm pretty sure they didn't want to mess with the one nicknamed the Pink Haired Demon, you do know I punched Ami Himekari on the first day right" Sakura pointed out slowly.

As they started a slow walk in a random direction, just chatting back and forth about this and that, until they came to another stop, this time in front of a set of gates, which signaled that he was tired of talking and intended on going home.

It was the female ghost that did it as Shino was turning _"Your not getting away that easily Shino-kun"_ Kushina exclaimed manifesting just a little bit and shoved Sakura into the boy, who swung around on reflex.

Only to have a girl fall on him, they both crashed to the ground _"Kushina are you insane, what if you hurt Sakura-chan"_ Hashirama panicked only to stare in shock as the dust cloud cleared to reveal the two preteen's in a shocked lip-lock.

Sakura's face turned a bright cherry red in response and went to pull away only to have her wrist captured "Er sorry about that Shino, I'm dead clumsy sometimes, I know it's mmmhphm" the pinkette hastily tried to apologize.

But it appeared Shino either didn't care or wasn't interested in the apology as he leaned forward hand pressed against the back of her neck to get another kiss "Your clumsiness is fortunate for me" the Aburame Heir pulled away a moment later.

Sunglasses slipping down his nose revealing beautiful hazel eyes _"Alright that was totally awesome you know"_ the red head pumped her arm in victory as the boy helped the girl to her feet, stole another kiss from the dazed and stunned girl, before turning on his heel and vanishing.

" _Are you alright Sakura-chan that must have been shocking huh"_ the brunette was concerned for the girl as she stood there for several minutes, eyes wide and fingers pressed to her lips unable to utter a single syllable she was so stunned.

Before finally putting a hand over her heart "Now I know why Shino doesn't take off his sunglasses beyond his eyes being sensitive to the light, those eyes could make a girl faint from just a look" Sakura murmured under her breath.

Turning on her heel as well and finally heading home _"Come on Sakura-chan give me the juicy details, was he good, what do you mean what's so special about his eyes unless their a beautiful blue I can't see what would make you stunned speechless"_ Kushina demanded.

The minute she was stood in her room and flopped onto her bed after taking off her sandals _"Are you injured anywhere at all from that fall"_ Hashirama was just more concerned that she'd gotten hurt when Kushina had pushed her.

"His eyes were hazel Kushina and he was alright, then again I don't have anyone to compare him to cause he was my first, which I'm angry about, why did you push me, I wasn't exactly ready and we barely know each other" the pinkette exclaimed sitting up suddenly.

Kushina looked sheepish in the next moment _"It's just I want you to experience the things I couldn't before I got hooked on Naruto-kun's father so I never had a chance to compare to other guys either"_ the red head blushed.

The girl sighed unable to stay angry at the woman really _"Next time a warning please, cause if you do that again it will make Sakura-chan look bad"_ the brunette stated wisely so that they could be a little more discrete next time.

His statement was met with a nod of the head from the girl their souls were attached to as she lay back on her bed for a good long while until it was inevitably time for supper, by that point she'd moved onto reading, then after a nice relaxing shower she went to bed.

And the next morning she headed for the training grounds, Hashirama nagging at her to do so "I know, I know but it's your fault for not nagging me to do this last night" the only pink haired girl in existence snorted going through her solo training session.

" _You know Sakura-chan is right Hashirama why didn't you, usually your all gung-ho about her training and keeping up with her studies"_ the Uzumaki woman pointed out lightly, violet eyes peering at the ghost of Hashirama from out of the corner of her eye.

Who kept his gaze glued to the ground before blowing out a breath _"Nothing good will come out of pushing Sakura-chan past her limit's so I let her have the night off"_ the First Hokage finally sighed, it was nothing but the truth.

Emerald eyes softened for a brief second then narrowed in determination as she continued her training, it was about 9 when someone wandered onto the training field "Good Morning Sakura" Shino greeted quietly from behind her.

She whipped around eyes wide "H..Hello Shino, good morning to you to" Sakura greeted with a light stutter as she remembered what had happened between her and him only yesterday thanks to a certain female ghost.

That had the grace to look sheepish for once _"Look he came to greet you all by himself Sakura-chan, maybe Shino-kun is here to ask you out on a date"_ still didn't stop Kushina from throwing around wild guesses as to what the boy wanted.

" _Or perhaps he could be here to apologize and say that he isn't ready for anything of the sort"_ Hashirama stated simply earning a glare and a whack that he couldn't quite dodge as the two preteens stared at each other.

Until Shino finally managed to steel his nerves "About yesterday what you saw, what can I do to convince you not to speak on that matter" the brunette finally spoke, cheeks tinged a light pink color as his skin flushed in embarrassment.

Sakura blinked at him in confusion before it hit her what he was going on about "You mean your, oh well you don't have to convince me Shino, though if I'm being completely honest their beautiful" the pinkette rambled cheeks turning a bright cherry red in response.

Wide eyed stares from the two ghosts that followed her around and a blank one was the reactions of her statement _"Alright Sakura-chan get him girl"_ the red head whistled making the girls cheeks turn a darker shade of red.

While Hashirama slapped a palm to his forehead in exasperation _"Pretty sure nothing is going to come out of this encounter Kushina-san, and don't go pushing Sakura-chan again"_ the brunette warned onyx eyes on the mischievous woman.

The boy couldn't believe his ears "My eyes, you think their beautiful, you aren't just saying that to get me to go out with you are you, that's what every girls says I show them to in the Aburame Compound" the Aburame frowned backing his classmate into a tree.

She shook her head "No, no your nice Shino and regardless of what anything thinks those insects of yours are an essential part of your life, and no I'm not saying this just to get you to go out with me, I just really thought that your eyes were well beautiful you know" the only pink haired girl in existence exclaimed.

Realizing that she was now trapped and turning red all over in embarrassment _"What was it you were just saying Hashirama, how nothing would come of this encounter"_ the Uzumaki woman asked smugly arms crossed over her chest and violet eyes lit up with glee.

" _Okay, okay I see your point, it's just hard to tell with that boy because of his blocked eyes and normally stoic expression"_ the First Hokage explained carefully his own cheeks tinted pink as he avoided looking in the duo's direction.

Now really surprised at the things coming out of his classmates, now fellow genin's mouth, he allowed his sunglasses to slip down his nose just a little bit to reveal those hazel eyes and they bore deep into those soulful viridian orbs trying to determine if anything said was a lie.

He could find an ounce of deceit in her eyes or facial expressions, "Thank you, besides Hinata, you two are the first females to accept me for who I am and not what clan I come from" he finally muttered as his heart sped up as he realized the position he'd admittedly put them in.

"It's nothing Shino, besides we genin have to have each others back and no matter what clan you come from we should all consider each other family, we are the leaves on the tree known as the Leaf Village, our Hokage-sama is the bough that holds us up" Sakura recited from heart.

And one of her ghost companions was pleased as punch to hear that _"Aww and I thought you would get another kiss boo"_ Kushina sulked as Shino bid Sakura farewell for the morning sure that they would be seeing a lot of each other over the weeks.

" _I'm just glad you remembered that lesson and the words I taught you Sakura-chan"_ Hashirama was the one to hug the girl his soul was attached to this time and Sakura grinned, emerald eyes sparkling with pride and happiness.

Later on after six or maybe it was seven D Rank Missions that she and her team completed Sakura traipsed back to her house for dinner, then climbed the steps to her room "So what are you going to teach me tonight" the pinkette focused her gaze on the duo.

Kushina considered the question and all she'd already imparted on the girl _"From me your going to learn about this time the elemental seals, that allows you to seal massive amounts of the different natures into it and incorporate into a fight"_ the red head announced.

Picking up a book after manifesting herself just a little bit, she didn't become visible or anything, but she could touch and even lift things _"And from me Sakura-chan, you'll memorize the hand signs to a new earth and water jutsu"_ the brunette finally decided on.

And so that's just what Sakura did for several hours until around 11:43, in which she put the finishing touches on her seal, ran through the hand signs to her newest jutsu's without adding chakra before finally going to bed and fell asleep wondering what the next day would bring her.


	4. First C Ranked Mission Part 1

Like predicted Team Seven saw a lot of Team Eight over the next month, once or twice a week courtesy of their individual sensei's, followed by countless more D Ranked Missions _"Come on surely they have enough experience now to get at least a C Rank_ " Kushina pouted.

Utterly bored out of her skull as she floated along after the girl her soul was attached to, her unlikely partner in crime let out a long suffering sigh _"They might be at this point, but that's up to their sensei to decide if their ready"_ Hashirama explained in a patient tone of voice.

As Team Seven and their sensei gathered in the room where they were assigned missions "No more D Ranks, I want a ninja mission" Naruto predictably unknowingly complained just like his mother had not more than two minutes before hand.

The girl the woman's soul was attached to shook her head "What about you two, do you think your ready for a higher ranked mission" Kakashi directed his lone onyx eye onto his two silent students, leaving the choice up to them.

Because truthfully the trio of genin had been ready for a few weeks now, he just didn't want anything happening to them, despite his initial reluctance he'd grown attached to the three little brats and didn't want them getting hurt.

Onyx eyes trailed in the direction of his soul female teammate "It's all on you Sakura, cause I'm tired of D Ranks to like the Dope" Sasuke snorted earning a scowl from Naruto which started a round of insults between the two boys until the Pink Haired Demon cleared her throat.

Prompting both boys to clamp their mouths shut to avoid getting whacked "Despite their still immature tendencies, I do believe we're ready for a higher ranked mission" Sakura finally relented to the pouting of both Kushina and Naruto.

It was a wonder she hadn't gone insane yet being stuck with two Uzumaki's for the rest of her life "Very well then a C Ranked Escort Mission to the Land of Waves" Hiruzen exhaled the smoke in his mouth as he spoke and shifted through the pile for the scroll.

Then held it out to Team Seven's sensei, to which afterwards they met their client, it wasn't a very fun meeting before they all trailed from the Hokage Tower to pack _"Finally I was about to die of boredom"_ the red head grinned.

Hashirama lifted a brow _"You do realize we're already dead right Kushina"_ the brunette pointed out carefully as Sakura rushed around her room grabbing everything she would need for the mission, before situating her pack onto her shoulders.

"Come on you two if you don't hurry I'll leave you behind and you'll be stuck in this village until I come back" the pinkette warned, the two ghosts floated after her as she bid her parents farewell and they wished her luck on her mission before hurrying down the streets of the village to the gates.

No one was there yet which gave her time enough to collect herself and let out a quiet sigh "What's this the only girl is here first, huh and here I thought girls took forever" Tazuna, the mission client known as the master bridge builder appeared a few minutes after her.

Sakura's eyes snapped to his and she couldn't help but be a tiny bit suspicious "Something wrong your giving me a suspicious look" the bridge builder chuckled nervously making her suspicions become even firmer that something was wrong with the mission before it had even begun.

And she wasn't the only one who noticed something off, Hashirama and surprisingly Kushina, but neither ghost spoke choosing to instead keep an eye on the man as the others on the mission sped to a halt "Alright this is gonna be awesome believe it" the blonde pumped his arm in excitement.

Mimicking his mother unknowingly who had a habit of doing the same "Dope this is not a game, it's a mission and we have to take it seriously" the raven haired boy on the team scoffed scuffing the few month younger boy on the back of the head.

Kakashi sighed "Okay let's get this mission started" the silver haired nin ushered his genin and the bridge builder onward down the path after they finished signing out, it was going to be a long several days he was certain of that.

All was quiet for a time as they walked for several hours in the direction of the Land of Waves, even the ghosts were eerily silent until the lot of them passed by a puddle _"Sakura-chan be on the look out it hasn't rained in weeks there shouldn't be a puddle there"_ the Uzumaki woman warned.

Sakura's hands clenched tighter around the lapels of her pack drawing a lone onyx eye onto herself _"I detect two chakra signatures within the puddle, it's an ambush, be on your toes and don't let your guard down no matter what happens"_ the First Hokage instructed.

Her spine straightened and she reached into her pouch smoothly to grasp a few weapons "Everything okay Sakura-chan you seem a little on edge" the Copy Ninja questioned pretending like he hadn't noticed what was wrong, but surprised she'd figured it out as well.

He shouldn't be considering how smart the girl was "Nothing at all Kakashi-sensei, just enjoying the nice relaxing walk where nothing is going to happen because it's a C Rank Mission" the only pink haired girl in existence said carefully.

Tazuna once again looked nervous "The hell are you on about Sakura" the Uchiha on the team scowled missing the rising tension in the air coming from the two adults and the only girl as they walked seemingly without a care in the world.

"Yeah…..KAKASHI-SENSEI WATCH OUT" the Uzumaki on the team turned to participate in the conversation only to freak out as chains wrapped around his sensei and ripped him to shreds, the two chakra signatures in the puddle had started their attack.

Even the two ghosts that were there were shocked at how quickly they'd been ambushed "I don't want to die" the client wailed, and with her heart pounding the only girl launched herself in front of their client kunai held out dragging the younger boy with her.

" _Move Sasuke, move don't just stand there gawking you stupid boy"_ Kushina ordered shoving the boy a little boy to get him running to leap in front of his other teammates as the two rogues came straight at them, or rather their client.

It was a tense few seconds until the Jonin returned unscathed and took down their two attackers with ease _"Substitution Jutsu of course, I'm losing my touch if I didn't realize it"_ Hashirama rubbed his forehead he hadn't realized ghosts could get headaches to but he had one now.

"Now before I question these two, good work Sakura-chan you realized something was off and you two good job for being brave to protect Tazuna-san, which might I add we need to have a talk just you and I after this" Kakashi spoke calmly tying their attackers to a tree.

The man in question gulped "I understand, I'll just be over there" Tazuna grimaced realizing that he'd been outed and now possibly he would either be escorted to his country and die there or just die right there on the way home because the ninja abandoned him.

"T..That was terrifying Sakura-chan, how could you two be so calm in the face of danger or potential death" Naruto piped in remaining glued to his sole female teammates side as she tended to the wound that he'd received.

And a pill that held the antidote to the common poison coursing through his veins "Because we're ninja Dope, death is a part of our life" Sasuke scoffed, though he to was a little shaken up, he hadn't expected anything to happen in the least.

Plus there was also, his gaze trailed to his sole female teammate as she tied bandages around Naruto's hand expertly "I have good instincts, could tell something was off even before we left" Sakura commented feeling his eyes on her.

Earning a scowl from Sasuke and a whiskered grin from Naruto _"Yes only because we warned you Sakura-chan, though it's probably best if you play it off as enhanced senses and good survival instincts"_ the red head pouted only to realize that Sakura couldn't tell the truth.

Without being seen as insane only to be locked up for it _"Very true and someday you'll be just as strong as Tsuna-chan, perhaps maybe you could ask her to take you on as her apprentice if that woman ever comes back to the village"_ the brunette suggested.

Reminiscing on old times and wishing he could see his great granddaughter and the woman she'd become, and it would make him especially happy if his two favorite girls could get along someday in the future and bond over things they had in common.

Just then Kakashi finished up with questioning the Demon Brothers from the Hidden Mist Village as they'd learned "You genin stay together like that, we might have more trouble headed our way, time to talk Tazuna, tell us the truth and the real rank of this mission" the silver haired nin ordered.

And Kushina was glad that he was finally acting like the boy she remembered him as, with a few extra quirks but that was okay "I..I'm being hunted by a man named Gato and probably A Rank" the bridge builder grimaced.

The genin's eyes widened in response and so did the two ghosts that followed the lone girl on the team around "Bu..But we're just genin we aren't ready for that high a mission rank, I just knew this was going to happen" the pinkette rubbed her forehead.

Feeling a headache coming on and with nary a thought healed it easily "Remember what you said though Sakura, even if he is a jerk and an old man, he asked us for help and I kind of like him, so we can't abandon him" the blonde waved his arms.

Having taken to the lessons that Sakura imparted on him "Dope's right regardless of the mission rank we can't abandon him now, I refuse to fail a mission" the raven haired boy nodded arms crossed over his chest.

Kushina and Hashirama grimaced _"Why do I get the feeling that things are going to go from bad to worse in just a matter of hours"_ the Uzumaki woman felt extremely uneasy as the two adults talked back and forth to reach some sort of decision on what to do.

" _You might not be wrong Kushina-san, keep up your guard Sakura-chan, things are going to get even rougher from here on, especially if there are rogue ninja after him, you might encounter a B or even an A ranked rogue next"_ the First Hokage warned lightly.

Pressing his ghostly hands down on Sakura's shoulders "Guess we're gonna complete this mission after all, just please for my sake stick together and try not to cause trouble" the Copy Ninja sighed finally relenting and so once again they started forward down the path.

Before they eventually got onto a boat "I thank you for your kindness and I'm sure my daughter and grandson will appreciate that you didn't abandon me either" the client spoke quietly, in awe of the ninja's loyalty to their village/client/mission whatever it was, it made him feel like shit.

"Don't thank us just yet old man we still have to get you back to your village first, which could mean encountering yet another rogue, that could be in a class all of his own" the Uchiha scowled peering off into the distance unable to see because of all the mist.

Even the one taking them across the water was eerily quiet "You really think we'll encounter someone so strong that not even Kakashi-sensei could beat them" the Uzumaki on the team gulped clutching onto his best friend, baby blue eyes betraying his fear.

Sakura's emerald eyes softened "Unfortunately and as much as I want to disagree with Sasuke for your sake Naruto, what he says is the truth isn't that right Kakashi-sensei" the only pink haired girl in existence nodded silently, directing her viridian orbs onto her sensei, who nodded sagely.

The two ghosts that were attached to her shared a concerned look _"Make sure you have a couple genjutsu tags on hand and maybe a few exploding tags and your elemental tags"_ Kushina rambled nervously as nerves finally got the best of her.

" _Relax Kushina they'll get through this in one piece I'm sure of it, it won't be easy, but they'll survive because shinobi endure"_ Hashirama reminded gently promising to keep his own guard up, he wasn't without his senses as a ghost after all.

And he swore up and down, left and right, backwards and forward, that he wouldn't let a single thing happen to any of the genin "Right here we are" the one taking them across the water finally spoke as they reached dry land.

"Thank you good sir alright you lot lets go, not much further and we'll reach Tazuna's village" Kakashi directed them through the forest on the lookout for any sign of trouble that might be headed their way.

Likewise Kushina and Hashirama were keeping their own guards up ready to inform the girl their souls were attached to of the first flare of unknown chakra "I can't thank you four enough for deciding to continue the mission even though the rank of it changed" Tazuna thanked them again.

For what felt like the millionth time in several hours "You don't have to keep thanking us, a mission is a mission" Sasuke huffed tempted to roll his eyes but didn't because he was more than a little concerned as his sole female teammate continued to walk rigidly in front of him.

She was tense, her body was like a tightly coiled wire, waiting to spring into action at a moments notice "I won't lose to you Sasuke" Naruto shouted suddenly oblivious to the rising tension in the air as he jumped forward and loosed a few shuriken.

"Baka what the hell are you doing, don't you know that, that was dangerous what if when we're all distracted the enemy strikes did you think about that" Sakura let loose with a scolding from hell and Naruto shrunk in on himself and even Sasuke backed away from her warily.

As for the enemy watching he was surprised when the air behind him shifted and before he could make the first move found himself pushed firmly out of the tree to land flat on his face, everyone whirled and Sakura's emerald eyes met the mischievous violet eyes of Kushina.

Kakashi couldn't help but be surprised _"That'll show the bastard not to sneak up on Sakura-chan, Naruto-kun and Kakashi-kun believe it"_ the red head snickered unsympathetically of the rogue's plight as he rose carefully to his feet trying to act all cool as if he hadn't fallen on his face.

 _"Bravo Kushina that was nicely done"_ the brunette praised proud of the woman for making the first move on the enemy before he could launch his own attack first rule of the shinobi conduct, never let an enemy have the upper hand.

It was one of the first things they'd taught their little protege, who clenched both of her teammates hands and backed them up until they were crowded around Tazuna "Zabuza Momochi huh, are you loosing your touch or something" the silver haired nin inquired calmly.

Earning light brown glare "Kakashi of the Sharingan eye and that is none of your concern" Zabuza growled throwing his sword, gargantuan ass sword that it was at the genin and Tazuna, who were all dragged down by that pink haired brat.

"Not bad for a bunch of brats, did one of you push me earlier" the raven haired rogue set his gaze on the bunch of brats as his sword embedded itself high in a tree and he appeared on the handle leaking KI into the air.

Sakura met his gaze evenly without an ounce fear when he glanced her way "Their genin, they wouldn't have the necessary skills to hide from a Jonin like yourself right" the bridge builder asked in confusion.

"Wasn't me I don't know the art of detection I prefer a hands on approach believe it" the blonde blurted shaking lightly as he kept close to his teammates while simultaneously protecting Tazuna to the best of their abilities.

An angry tick formed above the man's eyebrow "Sakura was that you, I mean you have those chakra suppression and cloaking tags in your tag pouch" the raven haired boy had to open his trap before realizing it hadn't been such a good idea to reveal some things.

"Great job idiot, now he knows some of what I can do and we lost the element of surprise on that front so he'll be expecting it and for your information you would have known if it had been me you know" the pinkette grumbled eye twitching in frustration.

Kakashi and Zabuza both stared at her as if they'd never seen her before _"Perhaps you shouldn't have told him about those"_ the Uzumaki woman punched Sasuke fists going through his head and he didn't so much as feel it, it was irritating.

While Hashirama sighed _"What's done is done Kushina-san, but we still have the upper hand Sakura-chan, also there's the other chakra you should be aware of, I believe he's this guy's backup in case things go south for him"_ the First Hokage warned yet again.

Sakura straightened and her eyes flickered in the direction the ghost pointed imperceptibly "Little girly has some brains in her head eh Kakashi" the rogue from mist commented narrowing his eyes on the girl picking up on the subtle eye movements.

"That's because Sakura had the highest scores in class and tied evenly with Sasuke during physical lessons she was dubbed the number one rookie Kunoichi of the Hidden Leaf Village" the Copy Ninja spoke in a calm voice as if facing down rogues were an every day occurrence for him.

Tazuna choked "How the hell can you act so casual and have a normal conversation with him, you do know he's here to kill me right" the client opened his own loud mouth trap, head popping up from the ground only to duck as kunai whizzed in his direction.

"Let Kakashi handle this however he wants to, as genin we won't stand a chance against him" the Uchiha frowned deeply, glancing to his female teammate, who was as calm as a cucumber in this situation it was weird and he didn't know how she could do it.

Plus the KI the guy was leaking out felt as if it was suffocating him "Teme's right Old Man, besides we have Sakura-chan on our side as well and she can do lots of things" the Uzumaki piped in lowering his voice to speak in a light whisper.

Sakura shot him a fond look "If we make it through this Naruto and we go home I'll treat you to three bowls of ramen, that's your limit" the only pink haired girl in existence said, giving the boy incentive to keep behaving for the time being.

" _Better watch out Sakura-chan, he's planning on attacking soon, I can feel chakra laced in with the mist, he doesn't know about your genjutsu or wind elemental seal, you can all scramble in a tree after activating the genjutsu tag, before blowing the mist away with the seal"_ Kushina suggested.

It was a good idea especially as the mist thickened around them _"What if he's expecting it though, plus he knows that Sakura-chan knows that his back up has been found out, the first person he'll go after is Sakura-chan"_ Hashirama pointed out.

Jade eyes narrowed in contemplation before a smile curved her lips upwards, then turned to her goofy teammate and whispered the plan to him, who nodded in understanding, just as their sensei vanished from sight followed by these words.

"Relax I'll protect you with my life, I won't allow my comrades to die" Kakashi crinkled his eye at his trio of genin and the old drunkard that had requested this mission, he hoped to kami that they managed to come out of this whole thing with no injuries and their lives in tact anyway.

"To late Hatake, it's over" Zabuza growled making his move finally and slipping around the protection formation that the genin made around his target and hacking right through the lot of them with his sword only to find a kunai to his jugular.

Followed by a blast of wind which blew away his mist and several puffs of smoke signaling clones popping out of existence as his target and the three genin literally disappeared, of course that little pink haired brat would have thought up a plan to protect his target.

But what had been even more surprising was the wind strong enough to blow away his chakra laced mist "I'm just glad it worked" Tazuna breathed a sigh of relief as they hid below the ground right underneath the feet of their enemy, using chakra suppression and cloaking tags to hide their presence.

"Shh Sakura-chan hasn't activated a sound proofing tag you old man, if your to loud we'll be found out" Naruto whispered in a low voice, just because he didn't being sneaky didn't mean he didn't know how to be quiet when needed.

The other two genin let out matching near silent exasperated sighs "Naruto's right, I don't want to reveal all my tricks just yet after all" Sakura nodded quietly focusing chakra into her ears to hear what was going on above their heads.

"What do you think is going on, do you think Kakashi has defeated that guy yet" Sasuke whispered in her ear and she didn't so much as flinch concentrating pretty hard because it was hard to hear through the earth.

They didn't have to wait long _"Um we have a slight problem up here Sakura-chan, Kakashi-kun has been caught in the water prison jutsu"_ the red head floated through the earth, Sakura clenched her hands tightly into fists.

" _And if you don't come out he's going to kill Kakashi-san anyway, before going to massacre people in the town"_ the brunette came next with the warning Zabuza had made, while Kakashi was stuck in his water prison.

With reluctant sighs the genin emerged from their hiding places, though Naruto left a few clones behind to protect Tazuna and even went so far as to make an extra one to transform into Tazuna "Good luck" the bridge builder murmured before the genin were stood above ground again.

"Bunch of good little brats aren't you, look at them coming out to save their captured sensei, all you have to do is hand over the old man and I'll let him go" the raven haired male offered, lying through his teeth because he didn't intend on letting any of them live.

Except maybe the girl, she would make a good apprentice once he broke her and turned her into the perfect obedient tool "No, get out of here, leave me and go save yourselves" the silver haired Jonin caught in the water prison ordered.

His genin shook their heads "We can't do that Kakashi, remember we won't abandon our comrades, we won't be scum that left you to die" the raven haired boy snorted harshly preparing himself for a fight as a water clone came to stand in front of them of Zabuza.

Naruto shook lightly "Yeah, yeah besides we don't have a chance against that guy without you Kakashi-sensei believe it" the blonde blurted keeping close to his female teammate, who was entirely to rigid to his frustration.

Sakura met the eyes of Zabuza's water clone evenly while considering all her options which were limited before an idea came to mind "Just one ripple isn't enough to change anything, but many would change the direction in our favor, Naruto, Sasuke, we fight together" the pinkette stated.

Activating one of her sound proofing tags discretely and hurriedly rushing through the plan she'd just come up with _"Good luck Sakura-chan and be careful alright, go at him with all you've got"_ the Uzumaki woman murmured.

Giving the young preteen girl a quick hug _"And just remember we'll be proud of you no matter what happens in the next few minutes"_ the First Hokage assured as the three genin got ready to launch their counterattack.

"I don't want to die, I don't want to die" the disguised Naruto clone of their client wailed trying to play the role he'd been thrust into, even if he was a fake, he had to make sure he wasn't figured out before they could rescue the Jonin.

Zabuza lifted a brow "Foolish what do you they hope to accomplish by trying to rescue you, the Leaf Village is full of naive little brats and this will end with their deaths" the rogue from mist commented casually to his captive.

Who was staring in horror at his genin "I told you don't do anything reckless get out of her, go back to the Leaf Village just don't do this" the Copy Ninja ordered once again trying to dissuade his genin from doing anything reckless.

But of course they didn't listen "Nu-uh no way Kakashi-sensei, the will of fire burns brightly within me and no matter what the cost I will save you, no matter what you say you know" the only pink haired girl in existence charged the water clone head on.

Fist held out before her and chakra built up in her hand, ducking low on the First Hokage's command and twisting to the side at the Uzumaki's shout before rearing her hand back once she was in range and let lose with an almighty punch.

Sending the water clone flying it gave the two boys the moment they needed to get their acts together "Sasuke" the Uzumaki boy tossed a large weapon at Sasuke, who caught it and spun around onyx eyes narrowed.

As he spoke the weapons name "Demon Wind Shuriken Windmill of Shadows" the Uchiha called jumping high into the air and throwing the shuriken, to which the rogue caught it, the second shuriken was next and it was jumped over.

But what no one expected except for the three genin since it had been their plan all along was for the sound of the transformation jutsu to sound behind the two Jonin, to reveal the Uzumaki boy and he threw a kunai at the rogue who held his sensei captive.

Which prompted the man to jump away to avoid getting hit, needless to say the rogue Jonin was not happy he'd been outsmarted by a bunch of brats and he turned to end the little brat only to be stopped by the Leaf Jonin.

Light brown met narrowed mismatched eyes a glint of anger in their depths _"You did it Sakura-chan that was perfectly executed and my little Naruto-kun is so brave, and Sasuke to that was awesome believe it"_ Kushina cheered in triumph.

" _And your chakra enhanced strength has improved also, very good Sakura-chan I'm proud of you, all three of you"_ Hashirama praised gently ruffling the girls long hair timing it just right as a breeze blew by them.

The girl was tempted to beam at them but kept her eyes focused on the two Jonin "Just what the hell have you been teaching those brats, particularly that one" Zabuza was definitely furious as he fought against the Leaf Jonin and pointed to the girl.

Who chuckled "Not much, I've mostly been helping them get in sync with one another so that their teamwork would be flawless" Kakashi explained casually though he was equally as confused at his sole female student, who was much more advanced than he'd thought she was.

"Keep behind us Tazuna, the fight is almost over" Sasuke did his best to keep up the act that the one standing behind him was Tazuna, as he and his teammate covered the clone to avoid any stray weapons coming at him outing the clone.

The clone nodded "You don't have to worry, I'm not moving from this spot" the Naruto clone disguised as Tazuna announced prepared to flee if push came to shove as they all watched the Jonin fight on a different level than any of them could have ever imagined was possible.

It wasn't more than a few minutes later that their missing teammate joined them "Thought for sure I was a goner, he looked like he was about to kill me until Kakashi-sensei stepped in" Naruto shuddered standing behind his two teammates wringing out his shirt.

"He was about to kill you baka but we did our part and contributed to the fight, all we can do is watch and wait" Sakura gripped her teammates hand, casting a furtive glance to the spot she knew the real Tazuna was still hidden and waiting for the fight to be over.

Suddenly a powerful wave of water rushed at them and they all held their ground the best they could, it was so bad that they had no choice but to get the real Tazuna out from beneath the ground "Really thought you kids were going to let me drown" Tazuna grimaced.

Off to the side of them Zabuza was slammed into a tree followed by several kunai being tossed at him, which all made their marks _"Careful Sakura-chan, his backup is about to reveal himself, he's probably going to make some lie and deceive you"_ the red head warned.

Feeling the subtle flare of unknown chakra as the two Jonin talked as if they were just taking a merry stroll through the forest _"Don't let his appearance fool you, it's a fake"_ the brunette returned just as two senbon needles came flying out of nowhere.

And embedded themselves in Zabuza's neck, all eyes turned onto the newcomer and Sakura's eyes widened "Your right his death was imminent" a boy probably a few years older than them appeared on a different tree.

The culprit who'd thrown the needles "I've been tracking him for weeks so I thank you for wearing him down" the teenager had black hair and spoke in a kind tone, that Sakura wasn't fooled by for even a second.

"Hunter nin from the Hidden Mist Village huh" the silver haired nin said grimly jumping to the ground to ensure himself that Zabuza really was dead for a moment everything was fine until Sakura stepped forward.

As the boy prepared to take Zabuza's body away "Hunter nin are supposed to dispose of the body in the area it died in" the pinkette stated already suspicious, but what happened next not even Kakashi could have guessed.

The entire clearing darkened and when the genjutsu was broken Kakashi found his sole female student, the boy and Zabuza's body gone "What happened to Sakura-chan" the blonde shrieked realizing his friend was missing.

"He was a fake that's why he took her" the raven haired preteen choked out just now realizing what had happened, his teammate had been onto them and to avoid being outed had cast a genjutsu and kidnapped the girl.

Kakashi was all for setting forward but the use of his sharingan finally caught up with him and he fell unconscious "We don't have any time to go looking for her, we have to get your sensei somewhere safe to rest" the bridge builder ordered.

Quite a distance away the boy set down his two passengers, the unconscious girl and his master before setting about removing the senbon when Zabuza sat straight up "What's she doing here Haku" the raven haired male growled seeing the girl.

"She knew that I was deceiving them, had no choice but to bring her" the younger raven haired teen commented making sure that she was still unconscious, it wouldn't do for the girl to wake up on them after all as they hurried to the base to rest for the night.

As for the two ghosts that were attached to the girl, they searched and searched for hours on end before realizing it was useless, they couldn't even go to her like they usually could just by concentrating, something was seriously wrong, but they would find her no matter what it took.


	5. First C Ranked Mission Part 2

Upon waking up the next morning she noted several things, one the two ghosts that hung around her constantly were no where in sight, two her hands and feet were tied with ropes and three she was in unfamiliar surroundings, last and final thing she noted was that the enemy was right there.

Off to the side laying on a bed, she was so screwed as she finally realized her situation, perhaps she shouldn't have said anything 'Me and my big mouth sometimes, I just hope the others are alright' she grimaced inwardly.

Just as the man turned his head and noticed she was awake "Ah awake are ya brat, boy the girl is awake come feed her before she starts complaining" Zabuza ordered and a door opened to reveal the fake hunter nin carrying a tray of food.

"I'm sorry I was just going to leave you all be, but when you said that I realized that I couldn't let you get away, unfortunately I can't untie you" the raven haired teen apologized gently as he held an apple up to her lips and she leaned back.

A wary glint in her jade eyes "What if you've put flavorless poison powder on it or some other unknown powder, I don't trust either of you and I'd rather starve" Sakura stated simply not really being loud just making her opinion known.

Zabuza scoffed "Then we would lose our bargaining chip, you in exchange for the old man it's a fair trade don't you think or I could always keep you, turn you into a tool to use, Haku could use a companion after all" the raven haired rogue rolled his light brown eyes.

Sakura frowned deeply and glanced around cautiously, but her two ghostly companions still hadn't showed up "Please just eat or you'll make him angry" the boy revealed as Haku pressed the apple to her lips again.

Left with no other choice she took a reluctant bite and in five minutes being careful not to make a mess the apple was finished and she was presented with water that was drained in the next moment before Haku disappeared.

Her shoulders slumped and she let out a quiet sigh "I suppose this could be worse" the pinkette finally said only to be ignored by the only other person in the room and she wished she had the ever chattering ghosts to talk her ears off there with her.

And as if willed to her side the two appeared before her _"Sakura-chan your alive, your alive oh thank kami I was really worried and Naruto-kun was all mopey and I couldn't cheer him up"_ Kushina ranted and raved.

Until her unlikely partner pointed _"We have bigger things to worry about, just what exactly happened anyway Sakura-chan, oh right it's probably better if you didn't answer"_ Hashirama grimaced realizing it would have been a bad idea.

Kushina winced as she spied the resting Zabuza _"Guess this is our fault for warning you huh we're really sorry Sakura-chan"_ the red head apologized wrapping her arms around one of her favorite people that she'd been with for twelve years now.

Emerald eyes softened, their presence made her captivity that much more bearable _"For what it's worth we intend on helping you escape once he leaves"_ the brunette nodded, Sakura pressed her lips together and shook her head subtly.

The situation was a lot worse than they'd thought as the fake hunter nin returned "If you'd like and if Zabuza-sama doesn't mind I'm sure you could read a book or something" the fifteen year old suggested seeing the bored look.

No one ever said being held captive was fun after all, Zabuza turned his head "Untie her hands only, if she makes a move knock her out and toss her in the closet" the former Mist Shinobi said relenting to the request.

He didn't think the brat would try to make a run for it, she was to smart for that "That's better than just sitting here for an undetermined amount of time doing nothing" the only pink haired girl in existence finally nodded in acceptance.

Her two ghosts in crime were relieved when the ropes around her hands were removed _"Read that new book you got just last week Sakura-chan"_ the Uzumaki woman suggested and the book was pulled out from the pouch.

" _Just try not to lose sight of your surroundings and become consumed by the book"_ the First Hokage felt the need to warn the girl, who had a habit of getting lost in a world of her own while she was reading and she sent a furtive imperceptible look that said she understood.

With that and glad she was being allowed to do something to pass the time, she focused on her book partially and started reading, while splitting her attention on keeping an eye on the duo in the room with her, never once letting down her guard.

Meanwhile back in the small village the Leaf Jonin was waking up from his Sharingan induced sleep "Kakashi-sensei your awake, your awake it's awful those guys kidnapped Sakura-chan and she hasn't come back yet" Naruto pounced upon seeing that his sensei was awake.

"They probably plan on using her as a bargaining chip, her for the old man" Sasuke was well aware of the situation, but he couldn't believe how fast everything had happened, how quickly his sole female teammate had been taken.

The man sat up carefully "We'll get her back Naruto, Sasuke and still protect Tazuna and his family, that I can assure" Kakashi vowed, it was all his fault for letting her come to close for that fake hunter nin to snatch after all.

"Boys don't badger your sensei when he's just woken up" Tsunami, a lovely woman raven haired woman entered the room helping prop up Kakashi with a ton of pillows before presenting him with a tray full of breakfast.

Kakashi happily dug in "So what's the plan how are you going to get Sakura back, I feel awful and we probably wouldn't be standing here if it weren't for her" Tazuna followed his daughter in the next moment a little boy standing back.

"For all you know your teammate could be dead already if Gato's gotten a hold of her and next will be the rest of you" Inari commented clutching the frame of the guest bedroom and glaring at the shinobi who'd escorted his grandfather home.

Tsunami turned sharply "Inari these nice shinobi are protecting your grandfather apologize and that young girl could still be alive" the woman scolded harshly but it was just no use, Inari never listened anymore.

"Your mother is right Inari, Sakura is a firecracker and put up with those old man for an entire day without breaking down in tears, she's alive and will stay alive no matter what happens" the bridge builder nodded seriously.

Inari glared at them "We'll see, you'll all see that I was right in the end" the eight year old boy shouted before rushing away leaving them to do their own thing and get killed because that's what was going to happen eventually they were all going to die like his father had.

"Don't worry about it Tsunami-san, Tazuna-san, but your right, Sakura-chan is a strong girl and her will isn't easily broken" the silver haired nin said thinking fondly on the girl for once despite the trouble she and her teammates caused him.

Naruto nodded his head eagerly "That's right because Sakura-chan says that we are the leaves of the tree known as the Leaf Village, old man Hokage is the bough that holds us up and supports us and we are the workers taking in sustenance to feed the tree and make it work" the blond recited.

Sasuke snorted "She also muttered something about how one ripple couldn't change anything, but multiple ripples can change the tide and turn it in our favor" the raven haired preteen reminded, having sort of kind of taken to that statement and was definitely going to use it again.

All three adults in the room shared a look "Either way you are going to rescue her right" their client who'd admittedly got them into this mess but no one was pointing fingers anymore, inquired not wanting to leave the young girl to a gruesome fate.

"Just try not to push yourself to hard" the older woman rose to her feet gracefully grabbing up the empty tray and with her father in tow they left the guest room so that the shinobi that were protecting could hash out a plan.

For several minutes things were silent "I think we would benefit from going along with their plan, Dope, Sakura's been teaching you those seals right, has she taught you the teleportation seal" the Uchiha turned to his teammate the only one there right now anyway.

Blue eyes lit up "Of course Teme what are you proposing that when the deal goes down that we place a seal with the transportation formula on the old man and when Sakura-chan is with us again, we activate the seal and get the old man to safety, though my calligraphy skills suck" the Uzumaki said.

Guessing the whole plan in a matter of seconds to both his teammate and sensei's surprise "You don't have to worry about that Naruto, I'll draw the formula on a tag and when they arrive to make the deal we'll instruct Tazuna-san on what to do" the Copy Ninja explained.

Plan decided on they went about their day until it was finally lunch time, back with the lone kunoichi on the team, she'd finally grown bored of reading and was laying back on the couch she'd been ordered to stay on staring at the ceiling.

Her two ghostly companions floating around the room they were stuck in with her _"I still say you should at least try to escape Sakura-chan, the boy isn't here and that guy can barely move, you'd have enough time to use a kunai cut through the ropes on your feet, open a window and escape"_ Kushina suggested suddenly.

Jade eyes flickered briefly in her direction without giving away her presence _"That won't work Kushina-san, we're just going to have to wait until those fellows come to rescue Sakura-chan"_ Hashirama announced in a serious tone of voice.

The girl their souls were attached covered her eyes with her arm trying to block out the rest of the world for a little bit, until suddenly someone was there shaking her shoulder, her body went rigid on reflex and her arm lowered to spy the older boy.

"I said Haruno-san I brought lunch, sorry it's just another apple and water, but that's all I could find since there's an apple tree and a stream so nearby" Haku smiled gently and she blinked at him in disbelief not even sure if the guy was genuinely nice or trying to trick her.

Not that she'd fall for it anyway "An apple is fine it's better than nothing" Sakura shrugged taking the held out apple and water, knowing better than to make any sudden moves or she would be thrown in the closet and she definitely didn't want that happening.

Resting on the bed, the rogue snorted "Lost your wariness have you, don't go trusting us brat, you are our bargaining chip to get the old man and you best remember that" Zabuza grumbled from his spot propped up by pillows.

And Kushina couldn't help but get angry _"Your one to talk mister I'm stuck in bed because I was an idiot and had to find Kakashi-kun just to kill Tazuna-san bargaining chip my Sakura-chan would never bow to you, you know"_ the red head ranted furiously.

Sakura's eyes shifted a fraction of an inch for a brief second _"Kushina-san now is not the time to lose your temper, I know this is frustrating, it's irritating to me, but we can't do anything or Sakura-chan will be the one to suffer for it"_ the brunette reminded gently.

Violet eyes turned guiltily onto Sakura "For your information Zabuza-san I haven't lost my wariness and wouldn't trust either of you with a ten foot pole also I know I'm not without a brain in my head like my idiotic teammates" the pinkette rolled her eyes.

Even Haku was surprised "Idiotic, they actually had a pretty decent plan, what with transforming into a weapon after all" the raven haired fifteen year old pointed out gently taking a careful seat on the couch wary himself.

Zabuza scoffed under his breath "That's because the brat there came up with the entire plan" the Demon of the Mist scowled harshly and his apprentice turned shocked doe eyes onto the girl sitting there calmly on the couch with him.

Her lips quirked up _"Come on Sakura-chan, Naruto-kun's not that bad, neither is Sasuke by the way if you get past the fact that he's our enemy he's cute"_ the Uzumaki woman commented and Sakura had a hard time suppressing the urge to blush.

" _Women what is it with you and cute guys, it took forever for Mito-chan to go out with me only because I wasn't up to her standards"_ the First Hokage stated with a light cough and Sakura itched to tell them both to be quiet.

But kept her mouth shut for a few minutes "Really, what made you think up that sort of plan, it was definitely unique, though it wouldn't ever work again" the fifteen year old prodded gently and Sakura pressed her lips together.

She couldn't exactly say that she had the ghost of the first hokage following her around giving her idea's "It was random and I honestly hadn't thought it would work in the least" the only pink haired girl in existence finally settled on saying.

"Whatever I know your lying through your teeth girl and I'm going to figure out how you shoved me out a tree as well without appearing to vanish in front of your teammates" the raven haired nuke-nin grumbled.

Viridian orbs narrowed in response at the statement, though she didn't speak choosing instead to eat her apple and finish off her water, before grabbing up her book again to read for a little while longer to pass the time.

" _Um Sakura-chan we have a problem, you remember when you were 7 and that guy tried to kidnap you but they never found him, but we remember what he looks like, well he's here"_ Kushina floated through the wall a moment later.

With the other ghost in tow and for the first time panic flickered in those emerald depths as she very well remembered what had happened when she was 7 _"T..Try not to panic okay Sakura-chan"_ Hashirama grimaced knowing that his warning would do no good.

As she started fidgeting and the teenager at her side, plus the rogue noticed "What's the matter do you have to use the restroom or something" Haku played off the panic that he could see plain as day, it was bound to hit her eventually, captives always panicked after all.

Her gaze flickered in his direction hands clenched tightly around her book "Y..You know I'd rather just be thrown in the closet" Sakura finally admitted, anything was better than being seen by that man again, even if it meant being stuck in a small enclosed space.

Haku peered at her dubiously "Suck it up brat, you aren't moving from that couch" Zabuza scoffed intending on tending to his sword for a bit proving he could move, just not much, and her chances of escape had just been rendered completely impossible.

Especially when the door was thrown open and in walked the very person she didn't want to see "There you are Za…..Haruno Sakura now this is certainly a surprise, my, my how you've grown from that itty bitty brat seven year old to what a budding twelve year old" he whistled lowly.

Sakura was impossibly rigid next to Haku now _"Think Sakura-chan, think isn't there something you can do to get out of here"_ the red head shouted tugging on her beautiful red hair that was almost waist length.

" _Kushina you'll only make her panic more if you shout orders at her now"_ the brunette scolded harshly and Kushina slumped her shoulders, there had to be something they could do, anything at all to avoid what was inevitably coming.

When the man stalked forward "What cat got your tongue Sakura-chan, you use to be such a chatterbox or could it be that you remember what I did to you, that night has been etched into my ow what the fuck" the man felt someone push him and he whipped around and fell flat on his face.

The girl didn't move an inch off the couch by that point looking like a wild caged animal as her heart rate increased and sweat beaded across her brow, growing paler and paler by the minute "Two rogues can barely scare you, yet you see a normal thug and you freak out" the raven haired teen frowned in confusion.

"Indeed you are a strange girl either way leave her be, if you touch or lay a hand on her we'll never get our target or the money from Gato" the raven haired rogue ordered the man who'd entered the room and went after his bargaining chip.

She blew out a quiet breath as her heart rate slowed to a normal speed and her skin gained it's normal slightly tanned color back "Mark my words Haruno, when this is all over expect a visit from me" the guy turned and vanished from the room furious that he'd been made a fool off.

Sakura lowered her book into her lap feeling the stares and they were slowly getting to her "Not going there, not a word will pass through my lips on that matter" the pinkette stated simply meeting their gazes evenly.

Meanwhile back at the bridge builders house "Got to wonder how Sakura-chan is doing, are they treating her badly, what if she's tied from head to toe and can't move, what if their poisoning her" Naruto rambled on and on.

"Dope they wouldn't be so stupid as to hurt her, they'll return her in the same condition as when they took her so please for the love of kami shut up" Sasuke couldn't take it anymore, he was worried to, but that didn't mean he was trying to drive everyone else insane with his worries.

Naruto gave him an extremely hurt look as tears welled up in baby blue eyes "Now, now Naruto, Sasuke is right, Sakura-chan is going to be fine, but sitting here worrying about it isn't going to help us rescue her, tomorrow I'm going to take you out training" Kakashi assured.

"That's not going to help you save your friend either not if Gato's gotten a hold of her then all bets are off" Inari accused when he raced by them on his way out of the house again to play down in the village with other kids.

An angry tick formed on his brow "I'm really sorry about Inari, he use to be so full of life and bravery, but after what happened to my husband none of us have been the same" Tsunami apologized for the millionth time for her son.

Tazuna grimaced at the mention of that man and his gaze trailed towards a picture, part of it was missing indicating the face had been cut out "And that's why I'm building the bridge to bring hope back to this land and put a smile back on Inari's face" Tazuna explained.

It was understandable really if they were all being honest "You don't have to worry Tazuna-san, we're gonna protect you and get Sakura-chan back from those who took her" the silver haired nin assured carefully.

"Hence the reason we thought up a plan, Kakashi-sensei drew it, it's called a teleportation seal and your gonna wear it underneath your clothes when someone comes to offer a trade, once Sakura-chan is with us, we'll activate it and you'll be out of danger to" the blonde rattled off.

Presenting the seal to Tazuna, who couldn't really believe that such an in depth plan had been thought up in a matter of hours "We can thank Sakura for teaching him some seals, that being one of them" the raven haired boy explained.

"Smart girl that one and I wonder what else she's capable of" the bridge builder scratched his chin in thought, it wouldn't be hard to act nervous, he was already terrified, but he would go through with it for the girl.

Tsunami swallowed "Your sure that your plan will work" the raven haired woman couldn't help but ask, it's not that she didn't have any faith in them, but two lives were at stake and so were many others if this failed.

A lone onyx eye trailed in her direction "It will work, that formula on the tag is full proof, once it's activated it will bring Tazuna to me since I have the other one that was made" the Copy Ninja nodded just wishing he could find out how his student was doing.

Holding out the second tag with the transportation formula on it, he wasn't sure where his student had gotten it from or even how she learned about it, but he was just glad "And then we're gonna kick ass" the Uzumaki blurted.

Sasuke rolled his eyes "Dope you shouldn't cuss in front of her" the Uchiha slapped his teammate on the back of the head, just glad that the boy wasn't complaining about their missing female teammate anymore.

The two adults left after that leaving them to their own devices until it was dinner time during which they got more accusations thrown at them from the child before it was finally bed time and they all bedded down for the night.

Meanwhile in the hidden base the lone captured girl was having a rough time of falling asleep, the teenager had his own room, and she was stuck with the rogue, who was already out like a light or that's how it seemed but she couldn't really tell because it was dark.

Where he was located anyway, the moon shined down on her and she flipped over with a quiet sigh _"Maybe you could write a message to Kakashi-kun, we could take it since we can carry things you know"_ the Uzumaki woman suggested lightly.

" _Good idea and we can scope out the situation on the way out and bring back news of how those fellows are doing"_ the First Hokage nodded his agreement of the plan and the girl glanced in their direction for a brief second.

Then sneakily reached into the only pouch she had been allowed to keep for the blank tags and pulled one out just as an idea hit her, so an extra one was pulled out 'Sorry Zabuza, Haku, but I'm not gonna be stuck here for a minute longer' the only pink haired girl in existence thought.

Biting her thumb and using her blood to write a hasty message and draw the transportation formula her Uzumaki ghost companion had taught her before sending both message and seal off after sneakily pushing some of her chakra into the tag.

She wouldn't do it now to tired to really use her chakra at the moment, just glad that neither of her captors had thought to block her chakra, she wasn't even sure they knew how, twenty minutes later her two ghosts in crime returned, flashing her a thumbs up.

The pieces were in place all she had to do was make the first move, which wouldn't be until the next morning as she finally managed to fall asleep only to be woken the next morning by the teenager, to which she was once again given a bloody apple.

"Did you at least sleep alright, I know that couch isn't exactly comfortable Haruno-san" Haku gave her that gentle smile again that she was entirely sure wasn't fake and that his kindness was genuine and it made her wonder how he even came to be under the rogue's control

But she dutifully took the apple "It was fine and I slept as well as one could in captivity" Sakura snorted lightly trying to make light of her situation just biding her time for the moment, her two ghost companions gone for the time being.

Most likely making sure that her sensei had gotten both message and seal "Brat what happened to your thumb you weren't writing one of those little seals were you, Haku check her" Zabuza saw the dried blood.

And Haku quickly turned reaching into the pouch full of blank tags, all of them were blank and Sakura fought down the smile that wanted to form on her lips, everything was working out perfectly, now all she had to do was wait until Haku left.

Zabuza didn't stand much of a chance to reach her that quickly and she'd be gone before Haku could return immediately "If all of them are blank then how did your thumb get dried blood on it" the raven haired teen frowned returning the blank tags to their pouch.

Sakura shrugged carefully "Probably bit it in my sleep, it's been known to happen" the pinkette lied through her teeth much more smoothly than before without so much as a single flinch and to her relief it was believed.

Because there was no other evidence that pointed to her doing something she wasn't supposed to be doing "Just be more careful if we return you in less than perfect condition, then the deal won't go through for the bridge builder" the raven haired rogue growled.

It was tense for a few second "Right I'm going to go pick some herbs" the fifteen year old stood and hastily left the room leaving his master alone with the girl thinking that she wasn't going to try anything, how wrong he was.

And that his departure was exactly what she'd been waiting on, though the two ghosts attached to her hadn't returned yet and she couldn't leave without her belongings, so she was stuck there for a few hours yet, it wasn't so bad really.

That was until the rogue slowly rose from the bed and with a light limp to his step stalked towards her and snatched her wrist when he was within range glaring at the bite on her thumb "Did you summon something and send it off to warn your sensei" Zabuza demanded to know.

Emerald eyes blinked at him in surprise "Fortunately for you I don't have a summons or otherwise I would have already escaped by now, and I wouldn't have gone that route anyway I like sneaky and underhanded tactics" Sakura met his gaze evenly without an ounce of fear in her eyes.

"Perhaps, but you still did something so where is it brat, did you shove it down in the couch thinking we wouldn't figure you out" the raven haired male demanded yet again, grip tightening on her wrist just a little, he wouldn't leave a bruise, but he could definitely scare her.

Sakura shook her head "You can check but you won't find anything" the pinkette offered and then suddenly she was jerked to her feet and tossed onto the bed as if she weighed nothing, moments later her eyes snapped in Zabuza's direction as he tossed the cushions to the floor.

Looking for the tag that she had drawn but he wouldn't find it because it was already with her sensei thanks to her ghosts in crime _"Sakura-chan what did he do to you, why are you on the bed, please kami tell me he didn't touch you"_ Kushina shrieked horrified as they finally returned.

Amusement sparked in those viridian orbs before fading as Zabuza cursed and growled before careful not to push himself past his limits _"Let me guess he figured out that you drew a seal and is looking for it"_ Hashirama questioned and she nodded imperceptibly.

Not that the rogue was paying her any attention at that moment _"Get my pack and things, we're out of here, Haku is out gathering herbs and it's only been eight minutes, he'll be gone awhile longer"_ Sakura mouthed to the two ghosts.

Who floated towards her belongings and picked them up before vanishing, Sakura blew out a breath waiting patiently much like her sensei was at Tazuna's house "Sakura-chan's going to do what, but how did she even get that here when she's captured" Naruto shouted loudly.

Even Sasuke couldn't believe the turn of events "Perhaps someone there is on our side and is helping her" Sasuke shrugged, not realizing how wrong he was as they waited for the girl to appear using the transportation seal.

Their sensei was just relieved to know how his sole female student was doing regardless of how she managed it "You know maybe she marked you Naruto, the message and seal was nearer to you after all" Kakashi finally suggested as an argument started between the two boys.

Back with Sakura and Zabuza "I know you did something girl, I just know it and mark my words I will find out what you did" the raven haired male turned sharply and stalked carefully towards the girl on his bed and lifted her up by the chin.

And no matter how much she wanted to mouth off to the man she held her tongue for the moment until she was forced back on to the couch a little to roughly for her tastes and Zabuza got back into his bed, she waited until he was comfortable.

"Oh Zabuza-san guess I should tell you now, but I did do something, however you wouldn't have found it because I sent it off to Kakashi-sensei, bye bye" the pinkette waved making a hand sign, connecting her chakra to the seal and vanishing before Zabuza's eyes before he could react.

In the next moment she was caught soundly in familiar arms "Thank kami Sakura-chan" the silver haired nin crushed the girl to his chest practically squeezing the life out of her, she'd come back to them safe and sound.

"Good job Sakura now we don't have to worry anymore right or rather for at least a little while until that guy recovers" the raven haired boy commented unable to keep from letting his shoulders droop in relief now that she was back.

Even Naruto was ecstatic to have his best friend back "You're amazing Sakura-chan believe it" the blonde flashed her one of his patented whiskered grins as their sensei set her down and before he could even blink she threw herself at him for a hug, dragging their other teammate in a moment later.

Her shoulders were shaking in relief "We're glad to have you back with us Sakura, if your hungry my daughter made food in preparation of your return" Tazuna entered the room to give the girl a hug himself when she released her teammates.

"An actual meal sounds nice right about now" Sakura nodded following the others from the room and down the stairs and into a kitchen just glad to be out of that tricky situation from before and no longer being forced to eat an apple for every meal.

The woman turned "Good heavens you're as thin as a rail, go ahead eat as much as you want, you must be hungry after all, are you alright sweetie" Tsunami couldn't believe how adorable the girl was and Sakura blinked at the amount of concern she was being shown.

"I'm alright Ma'am, tired, and yes a little hungry, but overall they didn't hurt me and they thought I would be to smart to try something joke's on them" the pinkette smiled digging right in with more manners than she currently felt she didn't have.

Back at the hidden base when Haku returned, his master was sitting on the couch not on the bed resting like he was supposed to be and the girl was gone "What happened Zabuza-sama" Haku set the basket of herbs down hastily.

As Zabuza's head snapped in his direction "That damn brat did something, just disappeared, I'm not quite recovered so I couldn't reach her in time, she waited until I was on the bed and comfortable, can't believe she got us" Zabuza growled furiously.

Now there would be no chip to bargain with "Then we fight them as planned in five more days and take out the bridge builder then" the raven haired teen finally blew out a breath realizing that they'd been outsmarted.

She'd waited until he was gone and waited until his master was completely comfortable before escaping right before Zabuza's eyes "Right and I'm going to teach that little brat what happens when she messes with me" the raven haired rogue grumbled darkly getting back into bed where he stayed for the rest of the day until bed time.


	6. First C Ranked Mission Part 3 (End)

Three days passed once she'd escaped the rogue's clutches, though she wished she would have just waited for the deal to go down as her two teammates or rather one of them plus the two ghosts that were attached to her tried to drive her insane.

" _We are just immensely glad you're okay Sakura-chan, cause we love you and don't want you to ever get hurt again you know"_ Kushina pouted that morning as the girl her and one other soul was attached to stayed cooped up in the guest room separate from the boys that she was allowed to use.

Emerald eyes flickered briefly in her direction before glancing back down to her book _"Sakura-chan is this about the nightmare you had last night"_ Hashirama guessed easily what the problem was and Kushina shot him a surprised look that he was bringing it up.

The twelve year old let out a long suffering sigh then made sure one of her sound proofing tags were up "Yes just seeing that man was enough to bring back everything he ever did to me and that other girl that we never found" Sakura admitted outright.

When she was eight she'd befriended a girl from another village at Kushina's demand the woman said the girl was an Uzumaki, she'd had red hair and ruby eyes, her name had been Karin, but she'd never been found, it was a part of her life she didn't talk about.

Just thinking about it was enough to bring tears to her eyes "Are you alright Sakura-chan, you look like your about to cry" and of course Naruto just had to walk into the room and see the tears in her jade irises.

To which she hastily wiped them away "We were coming up to ask if you were going to eat breakfast, otherwise that kid Inari is going to eat your portion" Sasuke explained their presence ignoring the tears not wanting to admit the sight bothered him.

"Or we could just bring it up here Sakura-chan I'm sure Tsunami-san wouldn't mind so long as you brought the tray back down later" Kakashi crinkled his eye at his sole female student, who'd been holding up remarkably well and hadn't cried once.

And he'd thought that the situation from a few days before had finally caught up with her, he was partially right but it had nothing to do with the two rogues that she'd been held by for a couple of days, but at the offer Sakura stood.

Before following them down the stairs into the kitchen "Good Morning Sakura-chan, your plate is there" Tsunami greeted kindly when the girl sat down and the two young boys headed off to get some training in.

"Well see you later Tsunami, this old man is going to work" Tazuna waved leaving his family behind to work on the bridge with his construction works, his guard for the day was Kakashi, since Naruto and Sasuke were training.

Sakura had turned out to be way to advanced and already knew how to water walk so she was left at the house with the woman and child "I still say your all going to die once Gato gets a hold of you" Inari spat finishing off his own breakfast and disappearing out the door to play.

Leaving the two females and the ghosts alone not that anyone but Sakura knew about their presence _"Just got to wonder about that boy, perhaps what he needs is a good spanking"_ the red head grumbled violet eyes crossed.

Hashirama shook his head in amusement _"And I have to wonder about your temperament you know it's not good for your health…oops and sometimes I forget we are dead to"_ the brunette sighed as they tuned into the conversation between the two living people.

"I really am sorry about him, he's been through a lot, and I really hate to ask this but could you go gather a few herbs, there's an herb patch just through the tree's in the backyard" the raven haired woman requested holding out a wicker basket.

Sakura polished off her breakfast and washed her dishes in the sink "Of course Tsunami-san" the pinkette exclaimed finally something she could do to take her mind off things and with an imperceptible look to her two ghosts in crime headed out the door.

Kushina and Hashirama interpreted her look easily it told them to stay there with Tsunami and if push came to shove protect her, which meant manifesting their will, they'd learned they could still use jutsu's if they concentration long enough after all.

With something to do Sakura traipsed into the forest out back and found the herb patch easily then bent to start picking keeping her guard raised all the while so when the air shifted behind her, she reacted and kicked out.

"That wasn't very nice Haruno-san, you know Zabuza-sama was very furious that you escaped from us, relax I didn't come here to bring you back, just pick herbs" it was Haku as she had already guessed and he jumped back before she could kick him.

Her emerald eyes narrowed "Really, though I was wondering about something you didn't react like any girl I've ever encountered wasn't that scary for you" the raven haired teen leaned forward and jade eyes widened as he got close.

And those words Kushina had uttered about Haku being cute even if he was just a bit on the feminine side popped into her head "Th..That's because it's not my first stint being kidnapped" the only pink haired girl in existence stuttered.

Dark brown eyes literally smiled at her "Do I make you nervous being so close to you Sakura-san" the fifteen year old smiled kindly in that same gentle way daring to move closer as he asked his question seeing the blush rising to her cheeks.

He'd meant what he'd said though, there was little point in capturing the girl in again, that didn't mean he couldn't mess with her a little "Why on earth would I be nervous for" Sakura huffed intending on turning away.

Until a hand captured her chin in a surprisingly gentle hold "Because I know what your thinking right now, can see that you hold a small interest in me and you know what's coming" Haku murmured leaning forward that extra little bit to close the gap between their lips.

The first thing Sakura noted was that his lips were soft as they pressed against her own and a little gasp escaped from her mouth, strong arms wound around her waist as the kiss deepened slightly and she was pulled into his chest.

But he didn't take advantage of her distraction and a moment later it was all over, Sakura felt like fainting because that had definitely been different from the time with Shino, her brain was full of cobwebs until Haku bent and started picking herbs.

"I'm not going to thank you for indulging my curiosity and that was a one time thing you hear" the pinkette huffed doing the same and hastily picking the herbs that Tsunami had requested, that were different from the herbs Haku was picking.

And he noticed her interest "Their to help Zabuza-sama recuperate faster and I understand, thank you Sakura-san" the raven haired teen nodded, rose to his feet and then walked off until he was no longer in sight, Sakura blew out a breath before finishing up herself.

Then headed through the tree's and back into the house "Here you are Tsunami-san, if you need me I'll be in the guest room" the only pink haired girl in existence held out the wicker basket to Tsunami full of the requested herbs.

"Alright then Sakura-chan, just be sure not to stay cooped up there for the rest of the day" the woman teased lightly earning a small wave as the girl vanished up the steps and hurried into the guest bedroom that were separate from her teammates and sensei.

Both ghosts were on her heels _"Whoa, whoa, whoa there Sakura-chan you look a little wigged out about something"_ the Uzumaki woman prodded as the girl sat on the futon looking a little to dazed for her tastes it was exactly like what had happened with Shino.

" _Sakura-chan has something happened, will you please tell us did you see that man again"_ the First Hokage prodded when the girl was to quiet for just a little to long in his eyes until she finally snapped out of whatever was bothering her.

Only to blurt it out in the next moment "It was Haku, the one working for Zabuza, he came while I was picking herbs and h..he uh well kissed me" Sakura winced knowing she should have pushed the boy away but she hadn't because of her bloody curiosity.

The two ghosts attached to her blinked _"Well how was it at least, is Haku a better kisser than Shino or how about a sloppy kisser did he slobber or what, come on Sakura-chan details"_ Kushina demanded in the next moment.

While the other was partially disappointed basically what the girl had done was fraternize with the enemy and when her emerald orbs glanced guiltily to him, he knew she knew and was already feeling terrible for it _"Better indulge her Sakura-chan"_ Hashirama said instead of scolding her.

"Better than Shino and it was nice though I told him it could never happen again because we are fighting for different sides and that makes us enemies" the pinkette explained, Hashirama's onyx eyes softened, she'd really taken to his teachings and he was proud of her for it.

Long gone was the disappointment it had only been a brief second and he couldn't exactly fault Sakura for being curious when she'd never taken an interest in boys before and even he had to admit that Haku had been what would be considered her type.

Kushina grinned from ear to ear _"At least he's kind enough to not try and kidnap you again, though they wouldn't have been able to hold you anyway"_ the red head commented as Sakura finally got relaxed.

" _Indeed though were you the one to instigate or was he"_ the brunette inquired gently, it wouldn't have been her at fault if the boy on the other side had been the one to instigate the kiss, but he still wouldn't be able to be disappointed in her if she had.

Sakura glanced to Hashirama "Haku was the one to instigate and before I could push him away pulled me into his chest, he was pretty strong and I couldn't think long enough to use my chakra enhanced strength" the only pink haired girl in existence said quietly.

Both ghosts nodded in understanding falling silent for the time being and allowing the girl their souls were attached to a few hours to herself "Sakura-chan lunch is ready, come eat, then would you take those guys their lunch for me" Tsunami knocked on the door.

And the sound proofing tag was hastily taken down _"Ugh what I wouldn't give to be able to eat real food again"_ the Uzumaki woman practically salivated at the sight of the delicious looking curry and rice, only simple meals could be made.

" _Me to Kushina but that is no longer possible for either of us ever again and you know that"_ the First Hokage nodded in agreement as the twelve year old sat down and quickly ate lunch and just as she was leaving with containers full of rice and curry to give to the others.

The little boy returned "Here I thought you would have gone crying back to your village already" Inari glared and got a pat on the head as the girl walked by him without a backwards glance, there was no point in talking to the kid anyway.

"Hmmph what was that all about" the raven haired eight year old grumbled marching into the kitchen for lunch, before disappearing outside to play some more, even if it was by himself, since none of the other children would play with him.

Meanwhile the lone girl on the team headed straight for her teammates chakra first "Sakura-chan what are you doing here" Naruto was the first one to spot her and immediately gave up on practicing the tree climbing exercise to hurry over to her.

With a long suffering sigh their other teammate also abandoned practice for the time being "Aren't you supposed to be protecting Tsunami-san" Sasuke raised an ebony brow until a plastic container, a spoon and a canteen of water was thrust into his hand.

Naruto receiving the same "She asked me to bring you guys lunch and Tsunami-san will be fine for a few minutes" Sakura finally spoke intending on heading off to the bridge to give the rest of the lunches out to her sensei and the old man that was their client.

"Wa..Wait Sakura-chan before you go, could you give us a few tips on how to help us understand the technique that we're supposed to be learning" the blonde waved his arms and Sakura turned to face him considering the offer.

Only to scowl when Sasuke nodded "Yeah since your gonna become the next chakra control expert of the century" the raven haired teen coughed not wanting to admit that he was still having trouble figuring out the right amount of chakra to use.

Sakura was the one to sigh this time "Fine, but you'll be instructed by my clone, you'll have exactly fifteen minutes with her before I get to far away and she pops out of existence" the pinkette warned running through a short list of hand signs.

For the water clone jutsu then turned on her heel, walking extra slow, knowing the curry would still be warm as she headed for the bridge where her sensei and Tazuna were and giving her teammates a couple extra minutes with her clone that she'd said before arriving.

"Aren't you supposed to be with Tsunami-san, has something happened" the bridge builder immediately freaked out at the sight of her and like Sasuke got a container, spoon and canteen of water thrust into his hand and he realized what she was there for.

To bring them lunch "How sweet of you Sakura-chan or did Tsunami ask you to bring lunch to us" the silver haired nin ruffled his sole female students hair gently and got a nod indicating that Tsunami had asked.

"Right well I'm going back now, can't let her be on her own for to long" the only pink haired girl in existence waved hurrying back to the house and found Inari gone and Tsunami cleaning up in the kitchen to which she helped out.

Before vanishing into the living room to read for a little bit _"Hey, hey Sakura-chan when do you think the fight will go down anyway, I was thinking in maybe a couple of days what do you think"_ Kushina rambled suddenly.

Jade eyes flashed in her direction, before glancing to the kitchen doorway, in the next moment a sound proofing tag was activated _"Sometimes I swear Kushina-san your about as bad as your son with your sometimes brainless actions"_ Hashirama shook his head in amusement.

Ducking under the fist she swung at him "Though she's right the fight will probably happen in a couple of days" Sakura finally relented and answered the question asked of her, before focusing on her book in hopes of getting some reading in.

Before she knew it the guys were traipsing in through the door back from a long day at work or training "What's for dinner" Tazuna asked sniffing the air like a hound dog and the sight was slightly funny that Sakura couldn't keep the smile from forming on her lips.

Until her sensei caught her and lifted a silver brow also looking slightly amused "Smells like more curry not that I mind in the least" Kakashi commented as Sakura stowed away her book in her pouch and followed them into the kitchen.

"It's curry sorry fella's if you were hoping for something different and you better not complain about the vegetables Inari, those are hard to come by" Tsunami scolded handing a plate to her son and he immediately crinkled his nose up at the vegetables.

But he sat and started eating anyway "Whatever" Inari grumbled under his breath and got rapped on the head by a wooden spoon courtesy of his mother, apparently was one of those rare nights that she wasn't going to put up with his usual antics.

Tazuna shot a look to his daughter "Either way curry's fine at least it's better than nothing" Sasuke shrugged getting a plate shoved into his hands along with a spoon before he chose a spot around the rapidly filling table.

"Though I miss ramen something fierce though" Naruto couldn't keep the comment to himself as he sat down and started eating with everyone else, unknowingly his mother agreed with him, because she also missed being able to eat ramen.

Kushina felt for her son _"My poor Naruto-kun not getting to eat ramen is a tragedy, you did well Sakura-chan he's just as obsessed with ramen as his father and I were"_ the red head snickered wrapping her arms around Naruto, though didn't manifest herself in any way.

Not wanting to scare him _"I'd probably eat anything at this point if given half a chance"_ the brunette sighed eyeing the food hungrily and missing all the delicious meals his beautiful wife use to make him, those had been the days.

Sakura smiled inwardly at her two ghosts in crime's antics "Here Tsunami-san I'll help you with dishes" the pinkette popped up from her chair once she was done and saw Tsunami headed for the sink intending to wash up.

"You helped out earlier Sakura-chan, so now it's the boys turn to do dishes" Tsunami said having no qualms about putting the guys to work and Sakura let out peels of laughter seeing the put out expression on her sensei's face.

Causing laughter to fill the air "This is stupid your all gonna die" the raven haired eight year old snapped pushing away his empty plate and disappearing up the stairs to his room, the amusement quickly faded after that.

And the guys stood "Guess there's no harm in helping do the dishes if Sakura-chan helped do them earlier it's only fair that we take our turn in helping out" the blonde rolled up the sleeves to his orange shirt and stuck his hands in the hot water.

Only to reel back as the water burned him "Kami are you insane boy haven't you ever washed the dishes before, that's dangerous and you have to wear protective gloves" even the bridge builder knew that much but the kid didn't.

Naruto looked sheepish and upset all in one go as Sakura healed the light burns that he'd received before being handed a pair of protective gloves to avoid being burned again "Dope every single time you help out something happens" the raven haired boy shook his head.

"You're just as clueless Sasuke so don't start tonight we're all tired" the silver haired Jonin warned stopping the fight before he could even get started, both boys gulped doing their part in doing the dishes with their sensei before they were allowed to go upstairs and get some rest.

Two days later after managing to complete the exercise they'd been taught the lot of them besides Naruto headed towards the bridge and that's where everything started going so wrong _"Sakura-chan it's them, Zabuza and Haku, their ready for another fight"_ Kushina warned.

" _J..Just promise me you won't be to reckless Sakura-chan please I couldn't bare it if something happened to you"_ Hashirama hovered behind her nervously onyx eyes glued to the opposite side of the bridge as they found the construction workers all unconscious.

All of them were on edge "You just couldn't wait for round two could you Zabuza, this time I won't be defeated so easily" Kakashi took a step forward kunai raised as the two genin with him made a protective stance in front of their client.

"I knew it, I knew today was going to be a bad day" Tazuna muttered under his breath sweating like never before, he could very well end up dying before he could complete the bridge that was the hope of his country.

Until a hand rested on his arm "Relax Tazuna-san we aren't going to let anything happen to you no matter what the cost" Sakura smiled easily holding a kunai before her the proper way just like Hashirama had taught her.

On the other side the Uchiha on the team nodded "Sakura's right because like you always say the will of fire has been instilled in us and it won't be easily snuffed out" Sasuke stated holding his kunai tightly.

"But your still trembling boy such a pity seems the girls the only one with a backbone after all" Zabuza snorted as water clones surrounded them which were swiftly taken out by Sasuke who didn't like being insulted in the least.

Zabuza clapped praising him in a mocking sort of way "Not very impressive actually because those water clones didn't hold their usual strength" Haku appeared alongside his master in the next moment, wearing that fake hunter nin mask.

Meanwhile back at Tazuna's house the missing member of their team had just woken up "I can't believe those guys left without me" Naruto scowled hurriedly dressing and waving goodbye to Tsunami, it was halfway through the forest he noticed something strange and had to go back.

In order to save Tsunami and Inari from a terrible fate and the little kid finally warmed up to him "Thank you Naruto" Tsunami thanked him for helping them even if he didn't technically have to, Naruto flashed her a thumbs up.

"Yeah now go beat those bad guys and get them out of our village" Inari was definitely emboldened as he had a change of heart, finally allowing himself to believe that things were going to turn out for the better once this whole fight was over and Gato was gone.

Back on the bridge a fight between Sasuke and Haku had started _"Oh come on Sasuke you can do it block that not like that ugh your impossible"_ the red head slapped a palm to her forehead as the two boys ended up in a deadlock with their weapons again.

" _And once again Kushina he can't hear you only Sakura-chan can and right now she doesn't need distractions"_ the brunette reminded getting the feeling that Zabuza and Haku's presence were the least of their concerns, he could feel another more unsavory presence hiding in the background.

Waiting to make his move as the fight between Sasuke and Haku came to a headway and Haku was kicked backwards "Guess you weren't as fast as you thought you were" the raven haired boy smirked smugly letting his cockiness show.

"You made a mistake insulting these genin, Sasuke and Sakura were the number one rookies of the year and Naruto is the hyperactive number one knucklehead ninja of the Hidden Leaf Village" the silver haired Jonin chuckled pride in his tone.

Sakura stuck her tongue out in lightly "We won't be easily beaten and we'll definitely put up a good fight" the pinkette vowed earning a scowl from Zabuza, as his light brown eyes turned on her, fury within their depths.

"Brat when I get my hands on you, you'll wish you never decided to mess with the great Zabuza Momochi, the demon of the Hidden Mist Village" the raven haired male growled darkly and she suppressed the shudder that wanted to crawl through her.

Tazuna gulped quietly "If you want to run Sakura it's alright, we could go back to the house and wait until this whole thing is over" the bridge builder offered thinking the girl was scared, well she was but that was besides the point and she definitely wasn't going to run.

Burning emerald eyes turned his way just as two newcomers stepped out of the mist swirling behind Zabuza and Haku "What are you doing here" the raven haired fifteen year old frowned and Sakura whipped around eyes growing wide.

Even Kushina couldn't help but gape "To get even with the little brat over there, with her in my collection the Grass Village could become even stronger" the man commented patting the girl at his side on the top of her head.

Ruby irises met emerald and Sakura's heart dropped into her stomach already feeling sick "It's been a long time Sakura-chan, bet you didn't think you'd ever see me again huh" the red haired girl spoke up quietly in that same shy tone.

The fight had just gotten extremely personal as fury ignited in those viridian depths and turned on the man of her nightmares _"Don't lose your temper, whatever you do just don't lose your temper Sakura-chan"_ the Uzumaki woman tried to reign the girl in.

Her hands clenched into fists _"Sakura-chan this is not the time to let personal feelings interfere with the fight already going on"_ the First Hokage warned seeing the angry tick forming on the girls forehead as she moved past furious and onto enraged.

"Um Sakura who is that and how does she know you" the Copy Ninja turned his lone onyx eye on his sole female student wanting to get answers because he definitely didn't like the sight of their headbands, the Grass Village was known for it's brutality and fighting after all.

And suddenly two members were there before them on the same side as Zabuza and the boy "Th..That is not a conversation I want to have right now Kakashi-sensei" the only pink haired girl in existence asked in a strained tone of voice.

Sasuke frowned never having heard his teammate sound so hurt before whoever that girl was, had been someone important to her "We're going to have to fight her aren't we" the Uchiha inquired carefully keeping a wary gaze on the newcomers.

"Not you boy the girl will and won't that just break your little heart to hurt one of your best friends in the entire world little Sakura Haruno" the man let a deceiving smile form on his lips and gave a look to his companion.

Who dashed forward "Here I come ready or not Sakura-chan, we're enemies and I'll fight to prove myself even if it's against you" the girl held out a kunai and locked weapons with her former friend, who was definitely reluctant to fight her.

All the while her heart really was breaking into a million little pieces "As for you, Haku get on with it" the rogue from mist barked out an order to his apprentice, who set his attention on the Uchiha and made a hand sign.

"Ninja Art: Crystal Ice Mirrors" the fifteen year old called created a dome of ice around his opponent and launched his attack as the rogue himself charged the Jonin with a curved kunai in his hand that was unique to Mist.

Fights raged on around them "I'm getting out of here" Tazuna ducked low and dodged to the right to avoid getting hit by stray weapons as the two girls fought neither one really battling seriously and still a member of their team was missing.

Until smoke came from where the Uchiha was being held down "Naruto Uzumaki is here believe it" the blonde appeared out of the smoke and everyone gave him disbelieving stares even his mother, who gaped at him.

But it gave her second favorite person in the world the chance she needed and Karin was knocked out from a pressure point in the neck _"Now we can take her back to Leaf and…do you think she is truly loyal to her country"_ Kushina frowned tears in her violet eyes.

" _Doubtful Kushina, you saw how reluctant she was to fight Sakura-chan after all, but we can't just leave her there, maybe Tazuna-san can hold her"_ Hashirama suggested as the girl lay there still as a statue but alive when they'd all thought she was dead.

At the suggestion the twelve year old girl turned "Tazuna-san it's better if you take her that way he doesn't have a chance to get her back, I refuse to allow him to ever touch her again" Sakura requested rising to her feet and healing her wounds.

"I've got her Sakura, she a friend of yours from a long time ago or something" Tazuna inquired carefully but Sakura shook her head indicating she wasn't going to talk about the girl or her past relationship with her just yet.

On the opposite side of the bridge the man who'd nearly kidnapped her once upon a time let out an enraged shout "You little bitch do you know what you've just cost me, mark my words I will get her back" the man threatened vanishing just as quickly as he'd come.

After losing the girl he'd brought with him it was going to be a heavy blow for the Grass Village, Sakura slumped her shoulders looking exhausted all of a sudden, this whole mission was wearing down on the very core of her being.

"Not bad brat didn't think you'd have it you to harm a friend, she is a friend right" a Zabuza water clone was suddenly in front of her, stood back out of the way but not attacking for the moment, but definitely wary knowing that she could also defeat him easily.

Sakura glanced to him and met the water clone's gaze evenly "Sakura be careful he's trying to lure you into a false sense of security" Sasuke called from his ice dome prison trying to warn his teammate of the danger.

But she already knew "You should focus on yourself and not what's going on outside this dome" Haku taunted, also concerned what was his master playing at, even if it was just a water clone, it would have usually attacked by now.

"That goes for you to, you big phony" Naruto shouted slinging shuriken at the older boy that they were fighting having gotten stuck in the ice dome alongside his teammate due to stupidity on his part, like he said he wasn't very good at this whole thing yet.

It would take awhile "Aren't you going to rush to her aide Hatake, she looks pretty exhausted, I doubt she'd be able to handle my water clone right now" Zabuza lifted a brow as the Leaf Jonin stood opposite him.

"Sakura-chan can handle herself even dead tired, she's more dangerous that way" Kakashi cast a furtive glance to his sole female student, trying to figure her out even know, she was to different and he was almost certain there was something she wasn't telling any of them.

Zabuza scoffed and tilted his head in the girls direction as well as she spoke to his water clone "It doesn't matter I wasn't going to allow her to hurt anyone else either" Sakura finally said feeling so, so tired in that single moment than in all her life.

" _Um Sakura-chan that Gato fellow is here, he's on a boat with a whole bunch of thugs, talking about how their going to kill Zabuza and Haku, even if their bad guys, it's not right that their being betrayed"_ the red head returned.

And she just now realized that the two ghosts attached to her had been missing for several minutes _"As much as I think you should keep quiet, you should tell him Sakura-chan so he can decide if he wants to live or die"_ the brunette sighed.

Sakura blew out a breath "Gato's here, he brought a bunch of hired thugs and he's intending on betraying you are you really gonna stand here and just take it or do you at least value your life and Haku's life enough to stop this madness" the pinkette lowered her voice.

Then launched forward with a fist held out to take out the water clone and the entire conversation was transferred to the original "Haku we're stopping, it seems Gato has become dissatisfied with us and intends on betraying us, he's here now" the raven haired male ordered.

Everyone stared at him in shock even Tazuna "What the bloody hell just happened, did he really just call the fight off" the bridge builder choked out in surprise, he couldn't believe this was even happening in the first place.

Zabuza sent him a glare but did lower his kunai as Haku returned to his side "Gato will pay for betraying us, we'll just have to betray him first, kill him and collect the money from his hideout" the raven haired teen frowned.

Taking off his mask "Hey its you the guy from the forest" the blonde blurted out recognizing Haku and Sakura's jaw slackened and hung open a little bit before groaning quietly as she cast a look at her still unconscious friend.

She'd clocked the girl pretty good over the back of the neck after all, then focused her gaze forward "Are they for real or this whole thing a ruse to get us to lower our guards" the raven haired boy on Team Seven joined his female teammate as they guarded their client.

A moment later it turned out not to be a ruse as Gato and many thugs appeared on the bridge "What's this and here I thought you'd be a wreck, but you don't have a scratch on you" Gato frowned realizing that the situation he'd walked into wasn't how he thought it would be.

" _Idiot came right to us and once he's gone Tazuna will be safe and we can finally go home"_ Kushina cheered dancing/floating around in circles really, after this mission she never wanted to go on any extended missions that could turn into an A Rank at the drop of a dime.

Her ghostly partner shook his head in amusement _"Agreed and I sincerely hope you won't do anymore complaining about wanting Sakura-chan to do higher ranked missions for awhile at least"_ Hashirama deadpanned, he would just be glad to go home to his village.

And relax without having to worry for Sakura's safety "Well you thought wrong and I've already caught wind of your plot to betray me, so we're gonna betray you first" Zabuza commented casually as if he was talking about the weather.

Gato froze in response "Then we're going to collect all the money you owe us from your hideout and use it for the good of this land" Haku vowed knowing that his master would be less inclined to leave, especially with the hideout in their possession, the hunter nin wouldn't find them easily.

"Their all yours then so does that mean your letting Tazuna go" Kakashi couldn't believe how quickly things had turned in his favor and he wondered just what it was his female student had told the man that made him have a sudden change of heart.

"Boy am I glad we didn't have to fight them seriously" Naruto leaped to his best friends and teammate's side clutching on the girl's hand tightly and she just now noticed that he and their other teammate were covered in scratches.

But decided to save her chakra for the moment until afterwards "Is that the girl that escaped you, ha is she even human that forehead is obscenely large" Gato commented suddenly, Naruto immediately backed away from his friend.

"He's an idiot Sakura don't let him get to you" Sasuke leaned clear away from his female teammate getting around of range as she whipped around the promise of death in her eyes if he made another sound.

Kakashi shook his head with a sigh "At least I'm young and can still grow into it unlike you, short bastard that you are, you know" Sakura glowered furiously never having liked anyone picking on her forehead and leaking killing intent in waves.

Scaring a few of the thugs away _"Little Sakura-chan's all grown up and scaring the piss out of fully grown men makes me proud"_ the red head wiped away a tear as Sakura held up a fist and bared her teeth angrily.

" _Now, now Sakura-chan let's just let those two handle Gato alright"_ the brunette suggested not wanting anything else to happen and for them to all make it home in one piece so that they could rest and do absolutely nothing for awhile.

Zabuza gave the girl a look, before glancing to the girls sensei "She's a bit touchy about the forehead, though that's mild compared to what she would usually do" the silver haired Jonin grimaced keeping a wary eye on his sole female student.

Who at that point had crossed her arms that angry tick on her forehead "Looks like you've got quite the brat on your hands" the raven haired rogue snorted harshly, before casting a look at his apprentice who took his place at his side.

"Let us get this over with then" the raven haired fifteen year old held out his weapon of choice and then they were charging head first at the group of thugs, hacking their way through to the very back to take down Gato.

In a matter of minutes the whole fight was over, but the thugs remained "Ha if you think we're going to leave without raiding that village first your wrong and I'm taking the girly with me as one of my prize" one of the thugs foolishly rushed forward.

Sakura's eye twitched "Duck for cover it's the Pink Haired Demon, she's emerged" the blonde threw himself to the ground as chakra exploded outwards from his best friend and the thug was punched solidly in the chin.

And thrown backwards with such a force that should be impossible, he was sent flying over the edge of the bridge "Now, who else wants to meet my fist and the wrath that I have saved up" the pinkette smiled a little to sweetly while cracking her knuckles menacingly.

"Are we entirely sure she is human anyway" the raven haired boy on Team Seven edged backwards until he was pressed against the railing of the bridge eyeing his teammate warily fear plain to see on his face.

He wasn't afraid to admit he was wholly terrified of his female teammate "What the devil and I thought you were a sweet girl, who knew you had such a personality" the bridge builder gulped himself still holding the unconscious red head.

Even the two Jonin and older teenager was staring at her with a hint of wariness in their gazes until she reigned in her anger and the angry tick went away as no one else charged at her recklessly or insulted her to large forehead.

" _We're proud of you Sakura-chan, you got that trick down to the smallest detail"_ Kushina snickered unsympathetically as the remaining thugs leaped over the side of the bridge to escape on their getaway boat.

" _Yes indeed and when we get home there will be a nice relaxing trip to the hot springs with your name on it, with the mission pay you get"_ Hashirama suggested knowing that it would a short trip home but they would be all exhausted.

The girl rubbed her forehead tiredly "That was certainly a surprise and you aren't trying to steal my nickname are you" Zabuza grumbled glaring at the girl, just what kind of nickname was the pink haired demon anyway.

She sighed then shrugged lightly "Her first day in the academy someone picked on her forehead and she punched the girl out everyone learned to fear her fists if she was angry" Naruto popped up from the ground earning a small smile.

"As they should have because I'm not one to take lightly you know, now you, and you and Kakashi-sensei to are going to hold still while I heal the three of you, Naruto, Sasuke and if you so much as wiggle I'll hit you" Sakura warned.

Not daring to argue with the girl after being nearly suffocated by her chakra "Whatever you say Sakura" Sasuke grimaced as she got started on healing him a bright green chakra coating her hands, it was beautiful in a weird sort of way.

"By the way Sakura-chan since when could you do that with your chakra, I know I haven't taught you about creating KI nor have I taught you about medical ninjutsu and it's time to talk about that girl as well" Kakashi frowned waiting patiently having decided to indulge his student.

"What are we going to do now Zabuza-sama" Haku inquired standing back with his master as they watched the Team of Leaf Shinobi, though now they were on the same side and no longer considered enemies it was weird.

Zabuza glanced at his apprentice briefly "If you'd like your more than welcome to stay wherever you've been staying" Tazuna offered suddenly, though it wasn't to shocking and the offer was accepted but the duo didn't quite leave yet.

Sakura's gaze flitted to the unconscious girl "Met Karin-chan when I was eight she had run away from the Grass Village, he came and saw us practicing medical ninjutsu, took me with her, but I was rescued and I..I thought that they'd killed her until now anyway" the pinkette admitted.

"How come you never told me Sakura-chan is that why you were depressed for months and had an even shorter temper than usual, come to think of it I think that's when everyone started calling you that nickname" the blonde scratched his head.

That's what opened the floodgates "I couldn't Naruto, not when..not when I thought she was dead and she could be a long lost cousin of yours how was I supposed to tell you th..that I let someone who could be family to you die" Sakura whirled green glow fading from her hands.

Naruto's skin paled rapidly in response "An Uzumaki, you think she's an Uzumaki Sakura-chan" Kakashi frowned realizing that now wasn't the best place to have such a conversation and he had to tread carefully.

"She told me that her mother told her that they were from Uzushio, only Uzumaki's lived there, plus they were torturing her sensei, those bastards from the Grass Village, Karin has a special ability, very special that it's horrifying for her to even speak about" she explained.

Brown eyes narrowed "How special could the girl be with her medical ninjutsu that the Grass Village would send someone to recapture her and bring her back into their ranks" Zabuza finally spoke drawing all eyes onto himself.

The girl blew out a breath and rolled up the sleeve of the shirt Karin was wearing to reveal tons of bite marks "What I taught her and what she can do are vastly different, by biting her and sucking out her chakra people can heal themselves" Sakura announced.

Kakashi looked sickened "You know I remember that incident about two eight year old girls being kidnapped and that only one was found, do you remember Sakura-chan I was the one who rescued you" the silver haired nin asked gently clearly walking on eggshells now.

Her eyes snapped to him and widened in response "Wow you definitely changed in four years then such a jerk when we met as teacher and student hmmph" she scoffed looking irritated as she did indeed remember.

And the only reason Kushina hadn't told her was because she and Hashirama hadn't been there when she'd been admitted into the hospital "That's not very nice to call your sensei a jerk" the raven haired teen at Zabuza's side laughed lightly.

"Yes well from the minute he walked into the classroom to greet us, he was three hours late and he said he hated us when he didn't even know us, plus the torturous d rank missions and crazy insane training sessions, he was a jerk but I think we've grown on him like a fungus" Sakura stuck her tongue out.

Finishing up with healing her teammates and sensei looking more tired than before "Do you need me to carry you Sakura, you look as if your about to pass out from exhaustion" Sasuke suggested, jade eyes glanced his way.

Sakura pressed her lips together considering the offer "No I can walk just fine thank you besides you creep me out when your nice" she teased and Sasuke flushed red in response, he couldn't believe her, why was she the only one who could get under his skin so easily it wasn't fair.

"Hahaha come on Sakura-chan I kinda want to check on Inari and Tsunami-san to make sure their really doing alright after earlier, had to save them from a couple of thugs" Naruto laughed as they all started walking in the direction of Tazuna's.

Who promptly wigged out at seeing the two rogues following them and threw one of her pans, it nearly, very nearly struck Zabuza in the head before he dodged the frying pan and it hit the wall with a loud clatter "Kami woman calm down would ya, we aren't after you anymore" Zabuza grumbled.

Eyeing the dent in the wall that had been left behind with a little wariness in his gaze "That's right and we intend on staying here in the Land of Waves for a good long while in Gato's old hideout" Haku nodded as the cooking utensil and other things that were being thrown slowed to a stop.

"Oh I see well then I'm very sorry for throwing my pan at you" Tsunami apologized with all the grace she could muster collected all of her things and vanished into the kitchen, her father on her heels after putting Karin in the guest bedroom.

"Can we really trust them Naruto-ni" Inari tugged on Naruto's orange sleeve peering at the rogues cautiously, Naruto nodded hesitantly after glancing to his sensei, who nodded as well as they got comfortable on the couch.

It was nice and silent for a very short time until a shout came from upstairs, Sakura was on her feet in five seconds flat and gone in less than one "S..Sakura-chan where are we, we aren't in the Grass Village are we" Karin was indeed awake.

Sitting up on the futon she'd been placed on fear in her ruby irises "No, no, no, no Karin-chan we're currently in the Land of Waves with my sensei and team, you don't have to fight anymore" Sakura assured hugging her friend for dear life.

Ghost companions suspiciously absent as they had been for quite awhile, though they were often gone for hours at a time sometimes and she was use to it "I don't you mean I can stop being bit" the red head asked fearfully.

"Yes Karin-chan you'll never have to use that ability of yours again unless you make the choice to" the pinkette nodded just glad that they could mend their friendship that she'd thought had been broken forever because she'd thought the girl dead until today.

Karin slowly relaxed and even returned the bone crushing hug "Oh Sakura-chan I've missed you so, so much these last four years, but they said that if I ran away again they would take you and force you to be their servant and I couldn't let that happen" the long lost Uzumaki girl cried.

And tears sprung into those jade irises "Thank you Karin-chan for being brave all these years, but I promise you now that you'll never have to go back, and I'll be the one to protect you this time" the only pink haired girl in existence vowed.

Eventually the young girl with a special ability drifted off into a restful sleep and the leaf genin sighed before heading back downstairs leaving her friend to get some good shut eye like she obviously needed, not without setting up traps everywhere in the room though.

Never would she take a chance that, that bastard was hanging around waiting to snatch her friend away again "Is she alright Sakura-chan, sounded like you two were crying" Kakashi directed a look to his sole female student.

She met his gaze evenly revealing slightly reddened eyes "Yes I was crying Kakashi-sensei, you can't tell me that someone you thought dead coming back into your life suddenly after four years wouldn't at least make you teary eyed you know" Sakura raised a brow.

Kakashi held up his hands in surrender feeling frustrated all over again "Sometimes I wonder if you aren't Kushina reincarnated or something" the silver haired nin rubbed his temples feeling a headache coming on.

His sole female student froze, the reaction wasn't missed "Who is this Kushina woman and how would she have anything to do with the girl" Zabuza frowned choosing not to comment on the reaction the girl had.

"My former sensei's wife that I won't be talking about for various reasons at this current moment in time because it's been forbidden" the Copy Ninja said, lone onyx eye trailing towards his blonde student who was currently oblivious to anything going on around him.

Zabuza caught the look and shifted his own gaze onto the young boy lost in a world of his own "My point was though is that you speak and act like her, like an Uzumaki, are you adopted Sakura-chan" the Leaf Jonin peered at his student curiously.

And the girl rolled her eyes unable to help her reaction "No I simply have a bad temper and like to say you know a lot, there's nothing wrong with it is there or does it bug you sensei" the pinkette crossed her arms.

Once again he held his hands up relenting with his questioning stare "Hey Sakura-chan when we get home are you still gonna treat us to ramen like you promised" Naruto chose that moment to come out of his little bubble.

"Course you knucklehead cause I want ramen to, by the way if either of you two even mention the letter C when we get back home I'm gonna whack you and whack you good because this mission was definitely not what I expected it to be" Sakura lowered herself to the floor.

To sit at her teammates side "You can say that again though a few good things did come out of this, I got my Sharingan, Kakashi finally taught us something, you got reunited with an old friend and Naruto might finally have someone to call family" Sasuke piped in.

"I don't think she heard you any Sasuke-san, the reason for that is because Sakura-san is asleep there on Naruto-san's shoulder" Haku chimed in helpfully pointing to the sleeping girl as exhaustion finally caught up with her at long last.

Crashing hard the minute she sat down "Don't you dare move her Teme, if Sakura-chan wakes up it will be your fault and she needs the sleep cause she definitely did more than you, not to mention she's been having nightmares every night" the blonde warned.

When Sasuke moved to pick his teammate up, but froze at the warning "What nightmares why the he….why didn't she tell us so much for being teammates if she won't tell us everything that's happened to her" the raven haired boy scowled.

"Now, now Sasuke, you know how girls are, they are very sensitive sometimes and perhaps she just didn't know how to tell you" Tsunami heard the conversation as she passed through the living room use to the rogue's presence in her house at that point.

"Exactly or do you want to be met with her fist, I hate to admit it but even if you two had continued to fight I'd probably be more scared of Sakura than of you two" Tazuna admitted appearing from the kitchen after his daughter.

Zabuza shrugged and Haku laughed lightly "Maybe Pink Haired Demon is an apt nickname for her after all that was some punch" the former Mist Shinobi said in a low grumble not wanting to wake the brat either.

"Then we shall let her rest" the fifteen year old stated in a soft tone of voice as they went about their day until it was finally time for dinner but no one dared wake Sakura even then and for bed Haku carried her up the steps to the guest bedroom and placed her on the futon to sleep undisturbed.


	7. Going Home

In the following days they had left in the Land of Waves and Tazuna's little village they all worked hard to help complete the bridge or rather Tazuna and his constructions workers did with Kakashi keeping an eye out.

While Zabuza and Haku followed after the genin, plus one extra, who were out training that particular day, probably the last they'd have in the Land of Waves "Sakura, how do you do that chakra enhanced strength thing anyway" Sasuke asked.

Having been meaning to but was only just coming around to asking, jade eyes shot in his direction "I gather chakra in my arms it's not different than gathering chakra in your feet, but you have to release the pent up chakra at the moment of impact" Sakura explained.

Earning a disgruntled look "That doesn't help in the least, can you show me" the Uchiha prodded his sole female teammate he was tired of being one upped by the girl after and if he could utilize that chakra enhanced strength for himself he'd be able to fight on equal footing with her.

"Words of caution Sasuke, you have to have perfect chakra control to be able to do that technique, otherwise you can tear the muscles in your arm and render it completely useless that not even Lady Tsunade herself could heal" the pinkette warned.

Making his skin pale rapidly "How about you learn to water walk then all three of you" Zabuza rolled his eyes, honestly didn't the damn kid have a backbone, Sasuke scowled even more at the suggestion.

And Sakura bit her lip "I already know how to, but Naruto and Sasuke have only just gotten the tree climbing exercise down, they aren't ready to learn how to water walk" she snickered riling her teammates up.

Even Naruto "Oh yeah I am to ready Sakura-chan, just you watch I'll have the water walking technique down before Teme does" Naruto stuck his tongue out at his rival, Sasuke grit his teeth before pushing himself to his feet.

Then both boys approached the water focused chakra into their feet and stepped out only to fall in less than a second later "Pretty sure that's not how you water walk, their doing it wrong aren't they Sakura-chan" Karin held tightly to her friend watching the two boys practice.

"Mhm because tree climbing and water walking are different" Sakura nodded glancing around warily not entirely sure that the Grass Village wasn't rallying a few of it's strongest to come here and snatch her friend away again.

So she was holding just as tightly to the girl as Karin was to her "What are they trying to do drown themselves, do they really know hardly anything about chakra or the technique at all" Haku creased his brow just glad he didn't have to fight them anymore.

Viridian orbs glanced his way "Unfortunately no that's why I call them brainless okay listen up you two to water walk, you must constantly reapply chakra to your feet to account for every little wave, ripple or fish in the water until you grow accustomed and do it without thinking" she instructed.

Finally growing tired of watching their attempts "You couldn't have told us that sooner such a wonderful teammate I have" the Uchiha grumbled sending a glare at his sole female teammate who simply lifted a brow in response until he turned back to try and get the technique down.

"Hey, hey Teme if I get this down before you, you have to cover the bill at Ichiraku for all of us" the blonde shouted suddenly focusing on his task which gave both boys a little more incentive to get the new technique down.

Sakura shook her head in exasperation "Immature boys water walking is child's play" the girl huffed sitting down and pulling out a blank scroll followed by an ink well and brush, then began writing seals on it in neat meticulous strokes.

"What's that Sakura-chan you definitely didn't know that back when we were eight you've improved on your fuinjutsu" the red head at her side lowered herself to the ground next to her best friend and she wasn't going to let her go this time, not like she had last time to save her.

Even the two rogues were curious as they drew closer "Elemental seal for wind have to make a new one because I used the other one and I can only get one good use out of them" the pinkette explained carefully.

Now drawing on autopilot, the two ghosts had made her practice until her hands ached and she could do it without even thinking about it speaking of the two ghosts as if thinking about them conjured them the duo were suddenly there before her after several days of absence.

" _Kami I can't believe she's still really here I thought I was hallucinating"_ Kushina blinked her violet eyes at Karin, who was sticking as close to Sakura as she could after four years of not being able to see each other.

It really was quite a warming sight _"By the way what are you going to do with those two, tell us later when your alone or have a chance to be alone"_ Hashirama rested his onyx eyes on the duo sitting a short distance away from the one his soul was attached to.

As something occurred to Zabuza "Is that what you used to push me out of the tree" the raven haired male accused in a growl and the other girl, jumped a foot in the air clutching tightly onto her friend in fright thinking someone had come to take her away again.

"Zabuza-sama she's frightened enough already, but it would make sense if you had I can see it now that ungraceful moment" the raven haired teen nodded lightly remembering how his master had landed flat on his face.

The girl glanced to them "That really wasn't me I swear, besides I used my wind scroll to blow away your mist and I only had one on hand" Sakura stated simply finishing up her seal just as Sasuke came storming over.

Like usual sporting a scowl on his face "We can't get the technique, would you demonstrate for us so that we can see what it is we're exactly trying to learn" Sasuke demanded arms crossed over his chest because he knew she was better at it than him and was definitely holding that over his head.

A pink brow rose in response to the demand "Only because Naruto is struggling to and Sasuke the next time you order me around like that I'll let you suffer your injuries for a while just remember that" she patted his cheek with a closed eye smile.

Every little hair on his arms rose to stand on end and a shudder crawled down his spine in response to the threat and that creepy smile she'd given him "Hurry up Teme or Sakura-chan's gonna change her mind" the blonde on the team hollered when Sasuke hesitated.

Before hurrying after his teammate "How much you want to bet she was lying about already knowing the technique" Zabuza snorted watching the girl walk up to the edge of the lake and pause to gather her chakra.

Then step out and walk several steps forward to stand a few feet away from her teammates hand on her hip and brow raise "Was that enough of a demonstration for ya Sasuke or are you to mind blown to comprehend what just happened" her lips curved upwards into a smirk.

And his eye twitched in obvious irritation "I don't get it how can you be better than me, I'm supposed to be one of the last remaining Uchiha a Clan Prodigy and yet your from civilian descent and better than me it's not fair" Sasuke sulked brooding in the only way he knew how.

Her eyes rolled upwards "Tough the worlds not fair Sasuke your just gonna have to get over it cause it's not gonna revolve around you like you want it to" Sakura scolded harshly knowing how cruel it could be especially to children.

Only a few came to mind and they were all in the clearing with her, Naruto lowered his gaze as well "Has it ever been unfair to you Sakura-chan, have you ever thought that" he asked gently as she joined them on dry land.

"I have many times Naruto that was during the lowest point in my life, after that I could no longer see the world through rose tinted glasses being naive has been a thing of the past for me for a long time as it should have been for you two as well but I let you carry on in your own little worlds" the pinkette said.

Sasuke and Naruto grimaced "So you know then about how my entire clan was massacred by my brother, how long have you known….." the Uchiha trailed off mind flashing back to that moment when he'd shoved her away.

Now he felt like an ass "Exactly since immediately after it happened there is little we can do to change the past, but what we can do is change the future" she finally plopped down next to Karin and the two boys set to work on practicing the new technique.

"You're kind of strange Sakura-san, just how is it you know all these things yet your sensei hasn't taught you them" Haku inquired daring to scoot closer as she worked on yet another seal that she wasn't even paying attention to lost in her thoughts as she drew.

" _Sakura-chan the cute boy is talking to you, better think up a lie quick and make it believable as to how you know all the stuff you know before Kakashi-kun could teach you"_ the red head waved her hands in front of the girls face.

And was blanked, she really was lost in thought _"Leave her be for the moment Kushina, no doubt her mind is full of worries and needs this time to sort through the mess that is her head"_ the brunette scolded gently.

Just a few minutes later Sakura shook her head to clear it of the cobwebs "Do you think I'll get to live with you Sakura-chan" Karin asked before Haku could ask his question again, though he wouldn't have to as she'd heard him.

Then answered both questions easily "I read a lot Haku-san and since I have perfect chakra control it was easy to learn most of that by myself and probably Karin if we convince my parents, plus they'll no doubt remember you and it will be easier that way" Sakura said.

"One question before we head back for lunch what did you use to escape me girl and how did you do it, how did you send anything to your sensei" Zabuza questioned watching the brat for any sudden moves.

Not even sure she would tell him but to his surprise she did "Transportation seal, I marked Naruto with it and I used my blood to write a message and draw the seal in the pitch black well I did have a little moonlight" she answered carefully.

Before her gaze flickered off in a random direction _"Um Sakura-chan it's one of those bloody grass shinobi and they aren't going to steal Karin-chan away again I won't let them"_ Kushina glowered in the direction she knew the guy was coming from.

" _What are you going to do Sakura-chan you can't fight and keep Karin safe"_ Hashirama floated back and forth in front of her but she didn't so much as blink, it was ghosts form of pacing and it happened so much it didn't bother her.

But Sakura did sigh and jump to her feet "We're going back Naruto, Sasuke, do me a favor Karin-chan stick close to them for a few minutes" a smile curved her lips upwards as she kept her gaze pinned in the direction Kushina kept glaring.

"You got it Sakura-chan" Karin hurried towards the two boys as they emerged from the lake just as the grass shinobi appeared though he wasn't expecting the pink haired girl as she stomped her foot and a twenty foot long fissure split the ground.

Making the guy loose his footing long enough for her to cartwheel forward and deliver a crushing kick to his ribs fully using her chakra enhanced strength a loud ~crack~ filled the air "Told you I would never allow you bastards to touch Karin again" the pinkette spat.

When the guy slammed into a tree and slid to the ground unconscious and no doubt in complete and utter body wracking agony thanks to three broken ribs and a concussion to boot from cracking his head against the tree the reason for his unconsciousness.

Complete and utter silence met this scene "Did you kill him" Haku, who really had thought the girl was sweet up until that day on the bridge or when she'd defied his master inquired unable to see the rising and falling of the man's chest.

"If he's still alive what are you going to do" Zabuza narrowed his eyes wanting to know if she would finish the job and kill him or if he would have to proving that she was still somewhat naive of the world, despite saying she wasn't.

She blew out a breath "Sakura-chan are you going to….but why" Naruto definitely couldn't watch as his sole female teammate started forward and bent before the unconscious man seeing the shallow breaths he made before raising her kunai.

"No one ever said being a ninja was easy Naruto this won't be the first time we encounter death in our choice of career, besides it's him or Karin and I'll choose to protect Karin every single time over letting these bastards live" Sakura stated simply.

And with brutal force because it really was difficult shoved her kunai hilt deep into his heart ending it in a single moment "Y..You'd go that far for her that's insanity Sakura" Sasuke choked out as bile threatened to rise in his throat.

Seeing the blood coating her hands as she rose "I would go that far for you and Naruto as well Sasuke I don't regret it and if given half a chance he would have killed any of us to, it's called….what the hell is that smell" the girl paused.

Getting the feeling that something wasn't quite right and by the time she realized it, it was to late, Sakura whipped around to see the smoking body of the guy she'd just killed just before it exploded right in her face before she could weave any hand signs to one of her earth jutsu.

She was blown backwards at the explosion _"SAKURA-CHAN NOOOOOOOOOO"_ Kushina screamed in horror hurrying to the girls side as she hit the ground with a loud thud that definitely sounded painful.

" _Are you alright Sakura-chan"_ Hashirama was once again pacing back and forth as she sat up a dazed look in her eyes covered in burns from the explosion not to mention bits of earth were stuck in her skin and she looked quite the sight covered in blood.

Her head reeled and she shook the cobwebs clear to focus only to find it was difficult "Fucker placed a timed explosion tag on his heart, the moment he died it activated a couple minutes afterwards" Sakura cursed lowly blinking her eyes rapidly.

Still shaking her head every couple of seconds barely able to see as blood dripped down from her forehead "C..Crazy that was crazy and what kind of reaction was that to nearly being blown up, you could have died Sakura, see that's what you get for killing someone it literally blew up in your face" Sasuke ranted madly.

Though it gave Sakura the clarity she needed to focus "Wouldn't be the first time I've nearly been blown up, ahem I gave one exploding tag to Naruto and he set it off in my face accidentally, never again I tell you" she frowned.

Going about healing herself calmly Sasuke's eye twitched "Hehehe Sakura-chan's right, and I'm sorry about that, we were nine Sakura-chan and I didn't know what it would do I was curious so I activated it" Naruto scratched his cheek flashing her a sheepish whiskered grin.

"You know Sakura-san you kind of look good covered in blood and cute to" Haku laughed lightly, making his interest in the girl known and she gave him a wide eyed look, then rose gingerly to her feet, well her mother was going to be upset.

Zabuza lifted a brow at his apprentice "Anyway I could convince you to stay here in the Land of Waves for the boy, I won't exactly be able handle it if he gets all depressed" he snorted harshly looking away unable to meet the boys gaze.

"Sakura-chan you can't leave us no matter if they've had a change of heart, you promised to take me back to the village with us" Karin latched onto her friend only to winced as a quiet hiss of pain came from the girl.

Who shook her head apologetically "I'm sorry but I have a duty to my village to…ooh I think I might have cracked my skull a little bit on the ground" Sakura paled and swayed unsteadily on her feet, her eyes became unfocused and then she was falling.

Her teammates barely caught her in time hearts in their stomachs and even Zabuza looked a little shocked at how quickly things had gone south on them "Damn brats making me work harder than I need to, set her down, go get your sensei, Haku help me with her" he barked out orders.

The girl was lowered gently to the ground to lay on her back and the genin ran off to do as ordered "Not a crack, maybe a concussion, she did bang her head pretty hard in the fall earlier" the raven haired teen gently shifted through the long locks of pink hair to feel for any signs of a crack.

Only feeling a large lump on the back of her head "Girl's got a hard head then if she didn't feel it until just now makes me wonder what kind of training she's been given to withstand such things" Zabuza mused out loud.

Off to the side the other girl that had joined their group wrung her hands nervously "Can you wake her or is that impossible" Karin asked making a decision finally on what she had to do, this had happened because of her and she could fix it.

Both males glanced to her "I can certainly try but there's a chance that it won't work as well" Haku pointed out gently pushing some of his chakra carefully into her system until ever so slowly her eyes fluttered open to peer at them blearily.

Karin was quick in acting as she leaped forward to kneel at her friend's side ruby irises determined "Sakura-chan I know you probably can't hear me very well but this is my decision okay I'm making this choice so I need you to bite me" the red head instructed.

Pulling up her sleeve so that it was out of the way and holding her wrist to Sakura's mouth "Don't make me force you Sakura-chan cause I will, what happened was my fault, he was after me and I won't see you nearly die on me again" Karin threatened.

With extreme reluctance Sakura's lips parted and bit down gently on the wrist to avoid hurting her to much then sucked lightly before pulling away revealing only a very light bruise "Just crazy the both of you" Zabuza shook his head in disbelief.

"Sakura-chan nearly died because of my stupidity, we were trying to sneak away when they took us from the Leaf Village and they got her really bad left her for dead but later on told me she survived" the Uzumaki girl ranted.

Just then the missing boys and the sensei of Team Seven returned "Are you alright Sakura-chan" Kakashi took one look at his sole female student covered in blood from head to toe and immediately thought the worst.

"A shinobi came after the girl from grass, the brat killed him the body exploded in her face" the rogue from mist chimed in helpfully and Kakashi stared in horror obviously thinking his student was now going to go crazy on them.

Because he spoke in the most gentle voice he could manage "Do you want me to help you back to Tazuna's, Sakura-chan so we could talk about the trauma you must be going through" the silver haired questioned carefully.

Sakura blinked at him then down to her clothes before raising a pink brow "Kakashi-sensei I am not a delicate little girl as to freak out at the sight of blood as a medic I'm going to see a lot worse than a bit of blood" Sakura said in a flat tone.

"Clearly she's in shock already perhaps we should just knock her out and take her back to the leave village unconscious to admit her into the hospital for therapy or something" Sasuke snorted trying to make a suggestion.

Her eye twitched and that angry tick formed on her forehead "I dare you to try and you'll find yourself in a crater with several broken bones, I am not in shock nor do I need therapy for any sort of trauma you think I might be having" the pinkette put a hand on her hip.

Naruto backed away seeing that angry glint "She's fine, just fine Sasuke-teme stop pushing the issue" the blonde shook his head at his teammate, he knew what that expression on her face meant and it didn't bode well for Sasuke.

"Even I know it's not a good idea to make Sakura-chan angry" Karin shuddered clutching onto the boys hand tightly seeing as how they could be related to one another no matter how distantly it might be and she wasn't going to stand in her friends way.

Sasuke was every bit as stubborn as Sakura was and this time he wasn't backing down _"Ooh that idiot boy I wonder what she's going to scold him about"_ the Uzumaki woman who's soul was attached to Sakura grinned from ear to ear giddily.

Hashirama shook his head in amusement _"Yes it's always interesting to hear what comes out of Sakura-chan's mouth sometimes"_ the First Hokage chuckled lightly just as Sasuke despite being warned not to, pushed the issue.

"We might be carrying them both home Yay me why do I have to get the weird ones" the Copy Ninja sighed pulling out his little orange book to read as KI filled the air coming off his sole female student in waves.

And Sasuke realized it probably hadn't been a good idea to push her past her limits, to late to stop now though and kept on anyway "What I meant Sakura is that if your having problems fucking lean on us, we are a team aren't we stop doing everything by yourself" the Uchiha snapped.

Her spine straightened "Your such a hypocrite Uchiha you want to talk past then go the hell ahead but it won't be me first you have the floor since you're the one with a problem and can't get in sync with either Naruto and I" the only pink haired girl spat furiously.

Moving past angry and into enraged, Sasuke's skin paled rapidly she was right he really didn't have any room to talk and he was a hypocrite "Fine my brother killed my clan and I want to kill him your turn Haruno admit that you need help" Sasuke spat back angrily.

"I'll admit no such thing because guess what Uchiha this is not the first time I've been covered from head to toe in blood it's part of a medics life to be surrounded by that sort of thing it doesn't mean I'm traumatized just that not much can faze me" Sakura scowled.

"Aren't you going to stop them Kakashi-san before she really tries to kill him I wouldn't put it past her at this point" Haku piped in quietly watching with quiet interest as the duo continued to argue back and forth.

The Leaf Jonin glanced to the fifteen year old "To try and intervene would be detrimental to my health and she wouldn't kill him above all their teammates and arguments like this are normal for them it allows them to work together much better afterwards" Kakashi waved his hand with a shrug.

Eventually the fight/argument died down with no fists being thrown "You know Sakura-chan sometimes you sound like old man Hokage" Naruto skipped to his friends side and plopped down as she started fiddling with a blade of grass.

Sakura blinked at him slowly for a moment not sure what to tell him that it was entirely possible because she had the First Hokage himself mentoring her and helping her through life "Just took to the teachings we were taught a little to much Naruto" she patted his cheek fondly.

"If your ready shall we go back to the bridge builders for lunch though one of you might want to go ahead and warn them that Sakura-san is well her appearance will be shocking no doubt" the raven haired teen suggested.

And Sasuke scurried off before anyone could order him "Alright you let's go" the silver haired nin helped his sole female student to her feet again and they started towards Tazuna's house slowly giving the Uchiha plenty of time to warn the family of three.

"Ne Sakura-chan you've really gotten stronger though and really improved on your medical ninjutsu since we were eight" the red haired red eyed girl clenched Sakura's hand tightly in her own being careful not to stray to far from the girls side.

Jade eyes softened in response "The devil happened to you did you hurt yourself Sakura" Tazuna was opening the door as they were coming in and he paused at the sight of all that blood on the young girl, who didn't look as if she was even fazed by it.

"It's not hers, someone came after little red there and upon his death his body exploded all over her" Zabuza was oh so helpful in explaining and Kakashi sighed, how was it that he got stuck meeting weird ass people.

Tazuna blinked "Right well Sasuke warned us and Tsunami drew you a bath, though I don't think you'll be getting all of that blood out of your clothes" the bridge builder pointed to the stairs and the two girls hurried past.

"Oh I know it's alright I've been meaning to change my style of clothes anyway this was just the excuse I needed to convince my mom that I'm a living breathing target with my bubblegum pink hair and that bright colors definitely don't help me blend in with my surroundings" Sakura shrugged.

Kakashi let out another sigh and flopped down on the couch exhausted and he'd barely done anything his students were going to drive him to plead insanity one of these days "Maybe I'm the one who needs therapy" the Copy Ninja groaned quietly.

"Eh I think we broke Kakashi-sensei Teme" Naruto poked the man on the arm but he didn't get a reaction the Leaf Jonin was lost in a world of thoughts and as much as two of his little students tried couldn't get him to react to anything until a few hours later.

"It's dinnertime you lot hurry up or my father and Inari eat it all" Tsunami informed them of supper and the lot of them gathered into the dining room to eat so that they could fill their stomachs full of good food.

"When did you get back downstairs Sakura-chan, Karin-san" Kakashi blinked at the two young girls, one dressed in a dress with shorts beneath it because she'd dirtied up her last mission outfit technically had to throw it away anyway and the other wearing the same outfit as she had before.

Since it had been washed "They helped Mom cook dinner" Inari piped in surprisingly and Kakashi creased his brow in confusion had he really been that out of it that he'd missed the two girls coming through the living room.

"You were rather lost in your thoughts Kakashi-san hence the reason you missed them" Haku informed the man carefully having mostly kept to himself the last several days just glad that the Leaf Shinobi weren't going to turn them over to their former village.

Both younger boys nodded "Exactly and Dope there tried to get your attention for two hours straight before finally giving up during the last our" Sasuke stated in a matter of fact tone and Kakashi sighed eating his steak.

Eight minutes later "So what exactly are you going to do with us anyway" Zabuza was the one to broach the subject that needed to be talked about before the Leaf Shinobi returned to their village the next day.

Immediately the two ghosts attached to Sakura appeared to listen in to the conversation _"As much as I hate to admit it those two aren't so bad and I really don't want to see anything happening to them at this point"_ Kushina wrung her hands violet eyes flitting between Kakashi and the rogues.

" _Whatever is decided upon I can't imagine it being to bad, technically Zabuza-san and Haku-san did help Sakura-chan and the others to complete their mission by taking out the main instigator"_ Hashirama pointed out carefully.

Sakura sat there in her chair eating slowly one ear perked up to hear the conversation her two ghosts in crime were having and the other ear directed in her sensei's direction to hear what was said about the two rogues from mist.

Though she felt the need to say something on their behalf "They did technically help us Kakashi-sensei even if they were against us at first" Sakura announced and behind her Kushina wrapped her arms around her shoulders squeezing gently without applying to much pressure.

The Leaf Jonin considered that "Very true and our mission was to protect Tazuna while he completes the bridge you two did take out the main problem so I can't see why you two can't just stay here for as long as you want" the silver haired nin finally said.

"And what happens if we run into trouble with the hunter nin and have to flee, that would just bring more problems to this country" the raven haired fifteen year old pointed out bluntly wanting to hear what could be done to avoid being dragged to the Mist Village.

Kushina and Hashirama shared a look _"Isn't there anything at all Hashirama-san that would give them immunity from their village should the hunter nin come hunting them here"_ the red head frowned deeply wringing her hands again.

Hashirama considered the question _"Should that sort of problem occur I don't see how they would get out of it sorry Kushina-san but once we leave here they'll be on their own"_ the brunette shook his head finally.

Sakura's heart dropped into her stomach and beneath the table her hand tightened just a little bit around Karin's "You'd have safety in the Hidden Leaf Village" Kakashi finally said in a smooth tone and the tension faded away.

While Kushina let out an ear piercing squeal "But what if the Mist Village hunts them there" Karin surprisingly was the one to ask that particular question that no doubt the rogues from mist wanted to hear an answer to.

"That's easy because they helped us complete the mission, not only that but since we are in the Land of Water and since no doubt Gato was a thorn in the Mizukage's side the pro's outweigh the con's and the argument would be a moot point" the Copy Ninja rattled off.

It was definitely a relief to everyone in the dining room to hear that "Hmm sounds good enough for me" the raven haired rogue shrugged in the end as they all finished up dinner and the boys did dishes for Tsunami before they all headed off to bed.

A couple hours after Karin had fallen asleep Sakura placed a sound proofing tag between her and the red head cutting off sound in half the room "Where were you guys for several days" the first question out of her mouth.

" _Well you see Sakura-chan we went back to the Hidden Leaf Village to check up on things, heard snippets of conversation though apparently the Chunin Exams are right around the corner in a month or so"_ the Uzumaki woman explained.

The girl tilted her head to the side in consideration _"Yes Sakura-chan it's a very real possibility that your sensei will enter you, thing is do you think your ready for it"_ the First Hokage stated simply before asking the question that was bugging him the most.

Her eyes lowered to the floor "No, I don't think I'm ready considering all that's happened here on the mission, our first mission outside the village and I can't help but think that things are going to get even more crazy from this point onward" she finally answered.

After several minutes of silence on her part _"But what about those two Sasuke and Naruto-kun, plus there's Karin-chan to worry about as well"_ Kushina blurted out knowing that it wouldn't go over well with her son that they would be exempt from the exams because Sakura didn't want to participate.

" _Exactly just one single second of distraction is all it will take and she will be carted off to Grass again and this time they might actually kill her, also I should warn you that the Chunin Exams won't be easy"_ Hashirama grimaced.

Even if she had him and Kushina on her side things would still be difficult "I'll train then you did say a month or so that will be enough time to decide whether or not I'm ready and I'm sure anbu will be watching if we explain the situation to Hokage-sama" Sakura announced.

Determination flaring brightly in her emerald orbs making both of her ghostly partners in crime smile at her with pride in their own violet/onyx eyes _"And we'll support you all the way through Sakura-chan"_ the red head exclaimed pumping her arm in excitement.

" _Precisely you'll never be without either of us ever again, that Kushina and I promise with the utmost sincerity we possess"_ the brunette vowed in a deep voice as the two ghosts attached to the twelve year old girl wrapped their arms around her manifesting their will.

So that she could feel them "I promise Kushina-chan, Lord First that I won't let either of you down, I will make it all the way to the end of the Chunin Exams" the pinkette vowed in a tone thick with emotion wishing she could hug them back.

The duo released her and after bidding each other goodnight and deactivating the sound proofing tag Sakura lay down on the futon next to Karin, their hands linked to ensure no one could snatch her away in the dead of night and finally drifted off into a restful sleep.

And the next morning after breakfast the Leaf Shinobi plus one extra set off for home leaving behind the Land of Waves and their new found friends it was hard watching them walk off and the fifteen year old shifted.

"Go on boy I'll be right here when you get back" Zabuza rolled his eyes knowing what was wrong with his apprentice, with permission the teenager shot forward fully using his enhanced speed to reach the five people.

All of them felt the incoming chakra as they were nearing the end of the bridge to get onto the mainland and turned to find out what was the matter "There's something I need to do before you leave" Haku smiled in that same gentle way.

Sakura blinked in confusion and opened her mouth to ask what it was he had to do but found herself cut off as hands pressed to her face warm, gentle but rough due to continued use and a second afterwards warm slightly familiar lips were pressed to hers.

Her eyes widened before snapping shut as the kiss was deepened much more than before, she was tugged forward into a chest an arm wound around her waist and one hand tangled into her silky pink tresses sending a shudder down her spine.

The kiss went on for all of three minutes before Haku pulled away his dark brown filled with emotion locked with dazed/shocked peridot "Please come visit soon Sakura-chan" the raven haired teen murmured pulling away as he spoke.

"U..Um right perhaps on one of my days off" the pinkette blew out a shaky breath responding to his hopeful request, he smiled lightly then was gone back in the direction he'd come from leaving behind a stunned group of people and a dazed girl with slightly swollen lips.

Even the two ghosts were shocked at the turn of events "Wow that was some kiss huh Sakura-chan" Karin whistled tugging her friend along by the hand as they started walking again, the poor girl was just to dazed to really make her brain work at that moment.

Ahead of them the three males were definitely speechless themselves "Guess he wasn't kidding about being interested in you huh Sakura-chan" Naruto finally managed to say after several minutes of complete and utter silence.

The girl shook her head to clear it of the cobwebs "Don't see what's so special about Haruno, all she's got going for her is that pink hair" Sasuke grumbled why did his female teammate get all the luck it wasn't fair, but he wasn't going to say that out loud.

"Better watch out Sakura-chan or you'll have a fanboy club on your hands before you know it" Kakashi teased still a little stunned himself, he'd never expected that to happen in all his life, nor be a witness to it and that was his sole female student.

Invisible to the rest of them except for the silent girl _"He was totally better than Shino-kun no wonder you looked so dazed that one day he kissed you the first time"_ Kushina squealed downright giddy with glee for her friend.

While her unlikely partner coughed cheeks tinted pink _"Though you must still focus on your training, training before romance"_ Hashirama reminded still trying to get that image of sweet Sakura-chan being kissed by an older boy out of his head.

She cleared her throat "Right I know Kakashi-sensei" Sakura nodded quietly answering all three people that had spoken even if two of them couldn't be seen by anyone else but her and with that they all set a faster pace to reach home it was late in the day when they did.

Checked in at the Hokage Tower, explained the mission and Karin's situation, the Hokage definitely remembered the red head, then they were all given a couple weeks off for completing their mission, the lot of them split up.

It wasn't hard convincing Mebuki and Kizashi to let Karin stay there with them because they also remembered the young girl their daughter had befriended right before they had dinner took showers and finally went to bed for the night.


	8. Of Breaks and Training Part 1

For the entirety of their two week break Sakura trained and Karin joined her so they were both being instructed unknowingly by two spirits "Say Sakura-chan when do you think the hospital will get the blood work back to see if I am related to Naruto" Karin inquired.

On one of their various breaks "Hmm we did that two days ago, and we've been back for three now, so give or take a few more days" Sakura answered a few minutes later going through different kata's to stretch her muscles.

Winding down for the day _"Just don't forget to visit the library and return those two books"_ Kushina reminded floating lazily on her back as the two girls, who'd been training like crazy the last few days since their return to the Leaf Village, started towards the exit of the training grounds.

" _And get new ones, the layout of this village, because as sure as I am that I was once the Hokage, a part of the Chunin Exams will be conducted in the Forest of Death, you must memorize the map and location of security camera's, the second a new book on fuinjutsu"_ Hashirama explained.

Sakura blinked twice to let him know she heard him, slowly having been creating her own version of code to speak with her two ghostly partners in crime while around others "We're going to the library again aren't we" the red haired ruby eyed girl guessed as they changed direction.

Her lips curved upwards "Yes Karin-chan the library again, I have to return the books I borrowed or I'll get a fine, plus to check out a couple of new ones" the pinkette said lightly glancing this way and that for any suspicious characters.

Two had already been caught trying to sneak into the village, both from the Hidden Grass Village, but thanks to increased security they'd been found by anbu and jailed for entering a village without permission and a great many other offenses that they hadn't been told about.

" _Mm maybe you should also get a couple books on advanced equations I remember the written part of the exam, plus how we had to cheat without getting caught"_ the red head with violet eyes floating behind them piped in.

Peridot eyes flickered furtively in her direction before blinking once in understanding _"Let us also not forget the preliminary round if two many of you make it through the second round, which is acquiring two scrolls and battling another team to acquire it"_ the brunette warned.

Not feeling guilty in the least for explaining the entire Chunin Exams to the girl it's not as if he was bound by rules any longer so long as she didn't go around blabbing, which she wouldn't, that was one thing she never had done was tell someone about their presence.

A few minutes later they entered the Library and went straight for the shinobi section after dropping off the books checked out before hand "When do you think the Grass Village is going to give up" the long lost Uzumaki girl prodded quietly.

Waiting patiently for her friend to finish checking out the books, there were three of them this time on different sorts of things "I don't know Karin-chan, could be that they'll never give up or they will and it's only a matter of time" the only pink haired girl in existence said.

Patting her friend gently on the back "O..Oh Sakura-chan I didn't k..know you were back" they left the library only to run smack into Hinata Hyuga, she was without her team for once, but she was wary of the newcomer.

Behind the pink haired kunoichi Kushina squealed _"Their so cute Hinata-chan and Karin-chan oh I just want to hug them and squeeze them and never let them go"_ the Uzumaki woman was practically brimming with happiness that she could quite reign it in.

Hashirama eyed her oddly before shrugging _"What is it with women and cute things"_ the First Hokage shook his head in amusement, he had no room to talk though because he would be just like that if he'd been born a girl no doubt.

"Got back a few days ago Hinata-chan, this is Karin, she's going to be staying here indefinitely, Karin-chan this is Hinata, she's from the Hyuga Clan, the Clan Heiress and the only other girl I consider a friend" Sakura introduced the two girls hoping for the best.

It was obvious both of them were shyer than all hell "R..Right pleased to meet you H..Hinata-san, I've be..been through a lot and I a lot of baggage bu..but I would like to get to know you as a friend to" Karin rushed through her speech nervously.

Earning a bright smile from her best friend "I..I would love to b..be your friend Karin-chan, anyone th..that Sakura-chan is friends w..with are my fr..friends to" the the blue haired girl blurted stuttering just as badly as Karin had.

Sakura gave a pleased as punch smile "That's wonderful, perhaps tomorrow we can all get together for tea to talk and let you two get to know one another" the pinkette suggested easily knowing that it wouldn't be to hard once Karin got past her fear of being used for her ability.

"Yea..Yeah that would be great o..or c..can you not come" the red haired girl with ruby eyes exclaimed looking excited before hunching her shoulders as the thought crossed her mind that Hinata might not want to.

Who blinked her lavender orbs in confusion at how quickly things had changed "Of course K..Karin-chan, Saku..Sakura-chan I'll be the..there usual place right" the Hyuga Heiress directed a look to her first friend.

The pink haired kunoichi nodded "Tea House 2 o'clock that sound good enough for you" the only pink haired girl in existence suggested yet again and got matching nods from the two girls, while her two ghostly partners in crime easily accepted it.

With nods of their own "G..Guess we'll see you tomorrow then Hinata-chan" the long lost Uzumaki girl waved as the three of them went their own separate ways to get home before they were no doubt late for dinner time.

Mebuki and Kizashi were already seated around the dinner table when the two girls showed up for supper "Honestly must you girls train until you practically ruin your clothes" Mebuki tsked quietly in disappointment seeing the tears and grass strains even blood stains on their clothes.

"Leave them be Mebuki, no one ever said being a shinobi was easy, besides it's not as if Sakura-chan and Karin-chan don't intend on buying different outfits soon" Kizashi cracked a joke only to whacked on the back of the head with a wooden spoon.

The two girls wisely kept their mouths shut during the comical argument that ensued _"Oh good grief woman stop your whining Sakura-chan is technically considered an adult in the ninja world so you can't tell her what she can and can't wear anymore you know"_ Kushina ranted.

And the girl in question was just glad her mother couldn't hear the woman ranting or the argument would be ten times worse _"Now, now Kushina-san this has been an ongoing argument for several years, Mebuki-san is unique you know that"_ Hashirama shook his head.

"Mom these bright outfits aren't going to help me blend in with my surroundings, they make me stick out and become even worse of a target especially with my hair" the pinkette spoke up carefully ready to bolt if the woman tried to whack her with that spoon.

Upon hearing her daughter speak Mebuki whirled a sour expression on her face "I know and that's the only reason your getting away with doing that to what's left of the outfits you couldn't sell that I got you" the blonde relented as she finally dished out supper for all of them.

Kizashi grinned from ear to ear "You've learned well how to manage your mother little Sakura-chan" the pink haired male laughed only to wince as that spoon hit him on the back of the head again as said woman walked back.

Off to the side the other girl giggled lightly "I'm glad that you guys allowed me to live here with you" the red haired girl smiled relaxing for the first time since she'd been in the Leaf Village, it was different than she remembered but at least her old village couldn't kidnap her again.

With that the lot of them dug into dinner as it was placed before them, before heading off for showers and finally heading to bed, Sakura was sharing her room and bed with Karin, so they climbed into the larger than life bed to get some shut eye for the next day.

It was basically a repeat of the other days until a little after lunch the two girls headed for the tea house to meet up with the blue haired girl "S..Sakura-chan, K..Karin-chan over here" Hinata waved gently as the two girls entered the tea house.

At her call both girls hurried over to the other girl and put in their orders for tea and three sticks of dango "What's been up with you Hinata-chan, how are things going with your teammates and sensei" Sakura said to get the ball rolling.

When an awkward tension filled the air from her friend "Right you're a genin to huh Hinata-chan what's your teammates and sensei like, is he just as weird as Kakashi-san" Karin jumped in with her own questions no longer stuttering like the day before.

Because Hinata was there and hanging out with them _"Well done Sakura-chan now all that's left is to find a team to put her on and she'll be just as ready for the Chunin Exams as you are"_ the red head with violet eyes squeezed the girl her soul was attached to in a bone crushing hug.

The action went unnoticed by the two chattering girls _"Perhaps Karin should wait for awhile, besides I don't think she's in much of a hurry to be put on a team or participate in an exam just yet anyway"_ the brunette commented next.

Earning a couple of blinks in response before Sakura tuned back into the conversation just in time for their orders to come "Ku..Kurenai-sensei intends on en..entering u..us in the upcoming Ch..Chunin Se..Selection Exams" the blue haired girl offered in the ensuing silence.

As they sipped on their tea or munched on their dango "I think Kakashi-sensei might do the same for Naruto, Sasuke and I, that's why I've been training cause I don't feel ready but I know those boys will be put out if I decide not to participate" the pinkette explained.

Karin blinked at her in surprise "Why wouldn't they still be able to be part of the exam even without you Sakura-chan" the red haired girl with ruby eyes frowned in confusion still lost on most things since her old village was behind the times.

" _Ooh you poor, poor girl Karin-chan and if I were still alive I would go beat up every single one of those bloody bastards that ever touched a single hair on your head Believe It"_ the Uzumaki woman ranted madly looking just a tad bit pissed.

" _As would I, my Mito-chan would never have allowed an Uzumaki child to be harmed if she were still around and if I were I would have invoked the oh my kami the law, Sakura-chan where it states that no Uzumaki child is to be harmed"_ the First Hokage remembered suddenly.

It was difficult to keep from turning to learn more but Sakura blinked her eyes three times to tell him she understood and that he should continue with what he was saying "K..Karin-chan on..only teams of th..three are all..allowed to participate in the e..exams" the Hyuga Heiress stuttered.

"Exactly and if I were to say I wasn't ready and didn't show up at the building to turn in the signed submission form, Naruto and Sasuke would be turned away because the team wasn't complete" the only pink haired girl in existence explained.

Understanding filled Karin's ruby irises "I understand Sakura-chan, Hinata-chan, thank you both for explaining it to me" the long lost Uzumaki girl nodded getting what she was being told as the conversation continued between the three of them.

" _What were you saying Hashirama about some kind of law, I never heard of it before, then again I was brought to live in the Leaf Village, nothing like how Karin-chan lived in the Grass Village"_ Kushina paused in her ranting to look at her partner in crime with narrowed violet eyes.

Neither of them had to wait very long _"Since my Mito-chan was the Matriarch of the Uzumaki Clan, Uzushio and Fire Country, Leaf had a law come into affect if one had even a small amount of Uzumaki blood in their veins they were not allowed to be harmed"_ Hashirama said.

"You guys keep talking, I have to run to the bathroom really quick" Sakura stood abruptly unable to focus on anything other than what one of her ghostly partners in crime were saying and vanished towards the bathroom.

Leaving the anbu to watch after the two remaining girls "Guess s..she really had to g..go huh Ka..Karin-chan" Hinata blinked her lavender orbs in shock at how quickly her friend had disappeared on them.

She wasn't the only one surprised at the speed witnessed "She did drain her tea pretty quickly earlier so it must have hit her suddenly" Karin eyed the empty ceramic cup that had been ordered by her best friend.

With that the two of them continued their previous conversation, meanwhile Sakura and her two ghostly partners in crime were in the bathroom behind a sound proofing tag _"Right please continue because I would like to know as well"_ the red head with violet eyes demanded.

Arms crossed over her chest and waiting as patiently as she could for the rest of the explanation _"Basically if Karin is indeed of Uzumaki descent all Hiruzen would have to do is find the scroll in the archives and invoke the law, surely every village has someone who remembers it"_ the brunette finished.

It was perfect and Karin would be protected and not have to ever worry about being kidnapped again "We'll have to do that afterwards once we get done here" the pinkette stated deactivating her tag and leaving the bathroom after washing her hands.

Not more than a moment later she slid smoothly into the booth tuning into the conversation of her only two female friends "Hinata-chan was telling me a little bit about her clan jutsu, gentle fist, it's all so confusing" the red haired girl with ruby eyes said once Sakura had returned.

"Fo..For those th..that have been training wi..with the Byakugan whole life it's not so con..confusing, an..anyway I've got to go o..or Father will be angry I was late to training" the blue haired girl explained placing down some ryo to pay for her tea and dango.

Then was gone in the next moment "Alright Karin-chan to Hokage-sama's, there's a question I'd like to ask him" the only pink haired girl in existence announced also placing down enough ryo to pay for her and Karin's tea and dango.

Before they also left the tea shop "I don't know how you do it Karin-chan, keep up with all those boys and still manage to have enough energy to drag me around the entire Leaf Village" the long lost Uzumaki girl yawned as tiredness creeped up on her.

" _Poor Karin-chan now I really want to hit those bastards you know"_ and the Uzumaki woman was right back to ranting and raving about how she would obliterate the entire Grass Village because they were nothing but a bunch of no good bastards anyway.

Hashirama blinked his onyx eyes at her warily floating along after the girl his soul was attached to _"It's probably a good thing you aren't alive or you'd have all of them terrified of you"_ the First Hokage chuckled wishing he could see that happen, but knowing it wouldn't.

"You'll get use to it Karin-chan, plus last night was the first time you didn't toss and turn so that means you are slowly moving past what happened to you" Sakura smiled gently leading the way up the steps to the Hokage Tower.

Not surprised that her friend had known she was having nightmares daily for the last several nights in a row she rubbed the back of her head sheepishly "True, I'm just not use to well having freedom to do what I want" Karin explained quietly.

As they waited for almost thirty-five minutes before they were allowed to speak to the Fire Shadow of the Hidden Leaf Village "Sakura-san, Karin-san what can I do for you" Hiruzen set down his pen and gave the two girls all of his attention.

"Isn't there some kind of law that would give Karin immunity from the Grass Village" the pinkette peered at Hiruzen with wide curious emerald orbs, she didn't want to seem suspicious after all so asked her question in such a specific way to avoid suspicion.

Hiruzen stroked his chin in thought _"Come on Saru, you can remember, I know I told you about it once upon a time"_ the brunette urged his former student to remember the law so that it could be found and invoked to protect Karin.

"Actually, you know I think there might be Sakura-san, you no doubt know that I was once trained by Hashirama-sama himself and he told me about a law we have/had with the Uzumaki's, it's only a matter of finding it and invoking it" the Third Hokage finally said after several long agonizing minutes.

One part of her task was complete "W..Would you like help in l..looking for it Hokage-sama or are we not allowed" the red head with ruby eyes piped in quietly wanting to help find it only if she was allowed to.

Another question that required a lot of thinking _"Oh come on you old badger, also you should really think about handing the title of Hokage to someone who's you know a lot more younger urgh this is frustrating you know"_ the red head with violet eyes groaned as it took to long in her eyes.

Before finally he answered "I don't believe it's forbidden for genin to answer the archives, however Karin-san since you aren't an official ninja of this village yet only Sakura-san may be allowed through to search for the scroll that describes the law" the wizened old man stated.

" _It's all on you Sakura-chan, do you want to spend however many days in the archives it takes to look for it, especially on your break"_ Hashirama winced realizing that it would cut into serious training time for the girl.

She didn't care though "What do you say Sakura-san, it will be considered solo C Ranked Mission if you decide to help out on your break" Hiruzen waved the just now written mission scroll at the young girl.

And just as he thought her eyes, that were so fierce and full of life, flashed with determination "I'll do it Hokage-sama for Karin-chan's sake" Sakura nodded peridot eyes piercing right through her friend because finally it was her turn to protect Karin as she had her for many years.

" _Right on Sakura-chan we raised you right Believe It"_ Kushina pumped her arm in victory dancing around the room or well rather floating and spinning around, but it was still a wonderful sight because the woman was graceful even as a ghost.

The other girl in the office couldn't believe her ears "You're giving up your break to help search for the scroll, what about training Sakura-chan" Karin exclaimed having not realized how strong her bond was with Sakura until that exact moment.

Sakura let a smile form on her lips "It's the will of fire, it burns so brightly within you Sakura-san don't let anyone take away your beliefs or ideals" the Third Hokage hummed knowing exactly what made the girl so different.

He had his suspicions but he didn't comment on them and sent the two girls on their merry way home so they could eat dinner, take a shower and finally go to bed to get some sleep for the next day that would make the first day of Sakura's solo C Rank Mission.

Not after training for a couple hours _"Good work and you better get started on your mission now, do you have your bento"_ Hashirama stopped her at exactly 9:50, giving her the rest of the day to work on her mission and sort through the archives for the Uzumaki Law.

At the question she held up the handmade bento that had been made "See you later then Sakura-chan" Karin waved quietly as they split up at the tower, her to find the other members of Team Seven and Sakura into the tower to the archives.

Where she was let through after presenting the mission scroll "Alright I won't stop until I find that scroll" the pinkette vowed setting her sights on the first row of drawers and pulled the first one out, then sat down and started going through it meticulously.

It wasn't more than an hour later "Gah why the hell are none of these bloody freaking organized" Sakura growled irritated as she realized that part way through the first row and on the few scrolls she'd found dated were no where near to the era she was looking for.

But she still went through every last drawer in the first row, which equaled six drawers, before sitting down to have lunch "Everything alright in here" one of the guards posted at the doorway of the archives poked his head in to check on the genin.

"Yep peachy keen Sir" she flashed him a thumbs up reaching on her tip-toes for the first drawer in the second row before sitting down to continue her task, the door was shut and she was left undisturbed for the better part of two more hours.

And by that point she was on the third row of drawers in which she had to use a step ladder to reach it due to being short _"This is going to take forever isn't it"_ the red head at her side groaned head reeling at the amount of artifacts and scrolls that Sakura had sorted through.

Hashirama grimaced _"Probably and that's only the first of many filing cabinets down here"_ the brunette pointed to the others but that wouldn't deter the girl his soul was attached to, he'd made sure the will of fire burned so brightly within her that she would get by on determination alone.

Two hours later she called it quits for the day "Have to come back tomorrow, only got through the first three rows on that cabinet" Sakura explained to the guard posted at the door, then traipsed from the Hokage Tower and down the streets to her home.

Where surprisingly her entire team and Karin were gathered "Where on earth have you been all day clear from ten" Kakashi's brow raised when his sole female student entered the house and joined them at the dining table, it was only 4:14 and dinner was a little while off.

"Been in the archives, Hokage-sama said that there was a law that he can invoke that would give Karin-chan immunity from the Grass Village, he assigned searching the archives a solo C Rank Mission for me" Sakura quipped.

Even her parents were shocked "Now I know what you wanted with the bento, honestly Sakura-dear" Mebuki shook her head amused but proud that her daughter would go that far for one of her best friends.

"You crazy I thought I told you to stop doing everything by yourself, we are a team aren't we" Sasuke grumbled crossing his arms over his chest sulkily and brooding as only an Uchiha could, his reaction was met with an eye roll.

And Sakura cocked a pink brow at her teammate "Oh and do you want to search the archives top to bottom and go through drawer after drawer meticulously for days on end during your break" she said bluntly.

Sasuke reeled back as he oh so conveniently remembered that they were on break and she was doing a mission during their break "Hahaha the look on your face Te…Sasuke" Naruto burst out laughing but didn't use that insulting nickname.

Because he definitely didn't want to get whacked with the dreaded wooden spoon Mebuki carried around all the time to reign in erstwhile males "You've grown wise Naruto-kun" Kizashi nodded a grin spreading his lips as he leaned forward to speak to the boy in a conspiratorial whisper.

Which earned him another whack on the head "Still can't believe you stayed there all day Sakura-chan from 10-4 that's six hours in the archives" Karin exclaimed realizing just what her friend was giving up for her.

Possibly her entire break "Anyway the reason we're here is we decided to eat dinner with you and Karin, Sakura-chan, also your parents, plus I wanted to let you know that as soon as break ends that it will be back to team training and something else" the silver haired nin announced.

His sole female student already knew what the something else was but didn't comment "Right and tomorrow me and the Do…Naruto will be at the archives to help things go faster" the raven haired boy on the team scowled daring her to argue.

"Yeah cause Karin-chan might possibly be family to me and I want to help out, even if it's during our break Believe It" the blue eyed blonde jumped in with his usual exuberance and Sakura blew out a breath wondering if it would be such a good idea.

There was nothing she could do but reign him in _"Naruto-kun's all grown up on me nooo I don't want my little Naruto-kun to be all grown up, I'm not ready you know"_ the red haired violet eyed woman wailed suddenly.

And Hashirama found himself being strangled though thankfully he couldn't die or breath but still _"Get it together woman, you knew it was going to eventually happen, and it's not just Naruto, but Sakura-chan to"_ the brunette couldn't prevent the sniffle.

Sakura rubbed her forehead feeling a headache forming in her temple her ghostly partners in crime's antics were enough to drive anyone to plead insanity "Alright but you must behave and not make to much noise, or we'll be thrown out" the pinkette warned.

Naruto gulped and nodded sagely in understanding, with that supper was under way and afterwards the rest of Team Seven and their Jonin Sensei left the Haruno house so that the two girls could get some shut eye for the next day.

Which was chaotic at best as the mission was changed from solo C to C as a whole for the entirety of Team Seven, they searched clear up to four every day for three days making it a week that had been gone by on their break and four that the archives had been searched top to bottom.

And not only that but everyday for two hours without fail Sakura and Karin trained _"Ugh that damn scroll is never going to be found"_ the red haired violet eyed ghost scowled furiously and feeling exhausted which was funny because a ghost shouldn't be able to get tired.

Yet here she was tired _"It will be found one just has to have patience, all three of them are hard at work Kushina-san and every drawer clear from that filing cabinet all the way to that one has been searched through meticulously by all three of them"_ the brunette deadpanned.

Though at the end of the third day the scroll that held the law on it still hadn't been found and four large filing cabinets had been gone through "My brain hurts" the Uchiha on the team held his head as a headache pounded through his skull.

"Mine to Sasuke, but I'm not gonna complain cause I'm doing this for Karin-chan" the Uzumaki blurted out, the day before it had been found out that Karin was indeed distantly related to the only other Uzumaki in the Leaf Village, and now the law had to be found no matter what.

Sakura let a smile form on her lips and turned to tell the two boys she could heal them when she suddenly rammed into someone, emerald irises swiveled up to meet familiar dark brown "Haku-san" the only pink haired girl in existence squeaked out.

He was alone "Just here to visit, your sensei said that it was alright considering things have been settled between Mist and Leaf on our account, Zabuza-sama is off somewhere, probably looking for your sensei" Haku smiled in that same gentle way that they were all use to.

And had realized it wasn't faked in the least his kindness was genuine "I doubt Zabuza will find Kakashi-sensei, that man can be elusive when he wants to be" Naruto snorted surprisingly and Haku blinked at him in response.

"I suppose that's understandable, by the way your village is lovely, a lot different than the Mist Village or what I can remember of it anyway" Haku joined the trio of genin on their walk to wherever it was they were going.

Naruto grinned "So besides being here to just visit what else have you come here for" Sasuke cleared his throat remembering what had happened the last time they'd been in this particular persons presence.

Clearly his sole female teammate remembered as well because she was unable to meet the fifteen year old's gaze for fear of blushing or fainting probably "Well to see how you guys were doing and see how Sakura-chan was doing" the raven haired fifteen year old said casually.

Wrapping an arm around her shoulder and pulling her close which prompted the girl to squeak and blush red "R..Really um th..that's nice I s..suppose" Sakura stammered heart beating erratically in her chest and feeling hot all over.

"Don't worry I won't kiss you this time, I promised to behave, oh Zabuza-sama's calling me see you later" and then he was gone after saying those words and Sakura exhaled shakily, what the hell was wrong with her.

She felt like tugging on her hair but she didn't want to come off as crazy but Sakura sucked it up waved her teammates off after healing them of their headaches and vanished down the streets to her house where Karin was waiting.

Her hopeful expression faded from her face when Sakura shook her head "Still nothing Sakura-chan, how many more cabinets do you have to go through" Karin sighed looking put out and depressed but she was trying to hang in there.

"Be patient Karin-chan, Sakura and those boys will find it, nothing good will come from rushing them after all" Mebuki stated wisely passing around dinner to her family and the girl who was as good as even if she was related to the other Uzumaki in the village a distant cousin to be precise.

Off to the side the only male in the house nodded "Exactly and if I know Sakura-chan she will find it, she's determined like that" Kizashi explained flipping through the evening paper and sipping on his coffee, while intermittently eating dinner.

Before it was time for bed _"Poor Karin-chan I wish there was something I could do to help her"_ Kushina willed herself to manifest just a little bit to run her hand through Karin's bright red hair in a motherly way, violet eyes filled with love, tenderness and pain for what the girl had been through.

" _Not just you Kushina-san, but I as well wish there was something I could do to help the process go quicker, nothing is organized and that is what's taking so long"_ Hashirama sighed quietly floating around the room.

Sakura bit her lip harshly and her hands tightened into fists "I will find it if it's the last thing I do" the pinkette vowed slipping beneath the covers of her to large bed that Karin was already sound asleep in to do the same herself.

The next morning after breakfast they hurried off to the training grounds, which were for the first time that Karin had been there occupied by two familiar people "Zabuza-san, Haku-san what are you doing here" the red head with ruby eyes asked in confusion.

"Visiting girl, just didn't think anyone would find us on such an out of the way training grounds as this one" Zabuza growled, not stopping once in his training, or rather basically he was wielding his sword and hacking through his own water clones.

Off to the side the teenager with him was training with his weapon of choice "So what are you two doing here" Haku inquired flashing them a quick effortless smile, as all of his weapons made their marks on the dummy.

Karin grinned widely "Training but we won't get in your way our normal spot is way over there anyway" the Uzumaki girl pointed to a far away spot, then started towards it, training took her mind off things or rather the one thing that was bothering her to the point of distraction.

The pink haired girl rubbed a hand down her face tiredly "Oh wait Sakura, are you free after this, we'll be training clear up to ten" the raven haired fifteen year old stopped her from hurrying after the red head.

A grimace formed "Ah sorry Haku-san, I've got a mission that will last probably every day of this week" the pinkette apologized an apologetic look in her peridot eyes, she would hang out with him, but that mission was her top priority at the moment.

Besides who knows what kind of trouble her two teammates would get into if she wasn't there to reign them in like usual "Kakashi told us that you were on break for the next week, so how do you have a mission" the raven haired rogue narrowed his light brown eyes.

"Karin was found to be of Uzumaki descent and a distant cousin of Naruto's, there's a law that can be invoked that will protect Karin from her old village, it's somewhere in the archives and it's imperative that it be found, Naruto, Sasuke and I were assigned the mission to find it" she explained.

They both nodded in understanding at the answer then returned to their own training while Sakura hurried after Karin so that they could begin their own two hour training session "Good luck Sakura-chan" Karin waved.

Sakura paused and turned "I will find it Karin even if it takes the rest of this month, the archives won't beat me and you'll be safe from all those that seek to harm you Believe It" the pinkette stated looking more determined that ever.

"Looks like it's just us huh, so where are you living Karin-san" the raven haired teenager was suddenly at her side as they started from the training grounds to find something to do to pass the time no doubt.

Karin looked to him and noted that the older one was missing but didn't ask "Sakura-chan's parents remembered me from back then so I've been living with her, though once the scroll with the law on it is found I'll probably move in with Naruto" the red head explained.

It was a logical explanation considering the two Uzumaki's were cousins no matter how distantly related and together the two of them wandered the Leaf Village until it was four before splitting up to go their separate ways.

This time when Sakura got home from the archives there was a triumphant gleam to her viridian orbs "Guess what we found Karin-chan the scroll with the Uzumaki Law on it" Sakura announced that night at the dinner table.

"Really Sakura-chan, you really found it" Karin froze chopsticks half way to her mouth before her ruby eyes lit up in excitement as she realized that now she would never have to fear the Grass Village again thanks to her first friend in the entire world.

Sakura nodded "Good job so does that mean you don't have to sit down in those dusty archives anymore, it's hard to get the dust out of your clothes" Mebuki inquired innocently and got an eye roll from her daughter who was more than ready when the wooden spoon came at her.

And ducked low "Yes mom I'm done with the archives for a good long while, it would have taken even longer if Naruto and Sasuke hadn't been there helping me" the pinkette said feeling like she was on cloud nine at that particular moment.

"Well it's good you found it just make sure you take an actual break to for the rest of this week" Kizashi snorted lightly ducking on reflex as Mebuki passed by and the woman let an amused smile form on her lips as they finished up dinner before going to bed.

The next morning Karin skipped on training "No offense Sakura-chan but I'm probably gonna go hang out with Hinata-chan" the red head waved vanishing out the door after tugging on her sandals, her anbu guards tailing her at a distance not that she was aware of them.

Missing her usual training partner not that it bothered her that Karin wanted to go hang out with the few friends she'd made Sakura headed for the training grounds by herself and lo and behold the two from yesterday were there again in the same spot.

"Brat and I see little red skipped on training, shouldn't she be trying to improve so that she can become a shinobi of this village" Zabuza paused and set down his gargantuan blade to speak to the brat as had become habit.

That's why it hadn't taken them very long to make the decision to come visit "Karin-chan is gonna wait a little while before becoming a Leaf Shinobi, plus she wanted to hang out with a friend this morning" Sakura admitted.

Looking as if the weight of the worlds had been lifted from her shoulders at long last "You found it the scroll with that law didn't you" Haku was the one to guess, never having seen the girl so relaxed in the admittedly short time he'd known her.

"Exactly and yes Haku, I'll spend some time with you, though since I completed my mission I was gonna tack on an extra hour to make up for lost time, I think Kakashi-sensei is gonna enter us in the Chunin Exams" the pinkette said.

Zabuza's brows rose "Hmm perhaps the two of you could spar during that extra hour find out how better you are than your teammate" the raven haired rogue snorted harshly remembering how quickly Sasuke had gone down once trapped in the crystal ice mirror jutsu of his apprentice.

"Not a bad idea, what do you think Sakura, I'm sure you'll be able to match me just a little better than Sasuke-san" the raven haired teen directed a hopeful look at the young girl and she had no choice but to accept.

So with a nod "Of course should be interesting at the very least" Sakura shrugged lightly as if talking to two rogues from an enemy village was an every day occurrence well it had been up until over a week ago.

The teenager smiled at that and they all started on their individual training _"Maybe he'll kiss you again"_ the red haired violet eyed woman sighed wistfully remembering vividly the last kiss the two teens had shared.

Her cheeks threatened to turn red as Sakura also remembered very vividly both kisses _"Kami woman is kissing a boy all you think about"_ the brunette groaned pressing the palms of his ghostly hands to his eyes and rubbing harshly trying to erase that image from his mind.

It was difficult not breaking down in raucous laughter but Sakura suppressed and instead died laughing inwardly while she went through her usual routine, which included practicing with the newly bought tantou that she'd gotten with mission pay.

And her two ghostly partner's in crime had demanded she get because it was perfect and could be incorporated with her natural taijutsu fighting style, followed by kata's, memorizing the layout of the forest of death and position of security camera's and lot of others.

"You still think you'll handle sparring against the boy" Zabuza was in disbelief, just what the hell was the girl trying to do kill herself by over training, it was a very real possibility, or she felt as if she wasn't ready for the Chunin Exams.

That had to be it "I'll be fine Zabuza-san" Sakura smiled lightly taking a half of a chakra restoration pill, to heal her wounds, then took the other half to replenish her chakra again before facing her opponent for the last hour of her usual routine training session.

He was holding up a senbon needle and held himself in a defensive stance "Ready or not Sakura-san here I come" Haku announced and after that three second warning launched forward weapon of choice held out.

Only to clash with a kunai, tantou sheathed on her back, it would used later possibly depending on how long she lasted, Sakura was well aware that her opponent could use one handed signs, so when he started going through a set.

She swung her fist out quickly making him lose focus in order to leap back to safety "Nothing like Sasuke just remember that, Doton: Earth Spike Wave" Sakura sped hastily through her own hand signs and slammed her hands down on the ground to unleash the jutsu.

Making Haku jump back even further "Not bad girl" Zabuza clapped his hands grudgingly as he realized the girl was trying to keep his apprentice at a distance so that he couldn't use his kekkeigenkai on her.

"Indeed but you must remember as well that I wasn't fighting at my full strength and am a little faster than you think" Haku smiled and sped forward dodging the few kunai thrown at him and was once again within range.

That was before the earth shattered beneath their feet and Sakura cartwheeled backwards to land gracefully on her feet a short distance away, once again out of range "Perhaps, but I have lots of tricks up my sleeves that you don't know about" the pinkette stated.

Shifting into a defensive stance herself, watching with intense emerald eyes, waiting for her opponent to make the next move _"That's our Sakura-chan, kick ass and scary Believe It"_ Kushina cheered rooting her little protege on.

Off to the side was the other ghost that followed her around _"What Kushina-san said"_ Hashirama cleared his throat and she couldn't help but feel pride well up in her heart, though she didn't let their antics distract her.

As she ducked low and dodged to the right sweeping her foot out to try and knock Haku off his feet switching up her taijutsu style to fit the current fight and struck out with two fingers "Oooh so you know a little about nerves and what happens when one of this is it" the raven haired teenager leaped back.

Wrist disabled for the moment, Zabuza narrowed his eyes as the fight dragged on "Just what the hell have you been teaching yourself" he frowned realizing the girl was actually keeping his apprentice on his toes.

It was a feat not many others could claim they could do, but while she was good at dodging and had good stamina, she was obviously no where near the level of actually standing toe to toe with Haku as at the end of the spar.

He ended up being the victor "Ha knew all that training in learning how to dodge attacks would come in handy" Sakura breathed heavily barely able to stand, that was one of the main rules to be a medic to avoid being caught, they had to have good evasion skills.

"Come on Sakura, let's go get lunch and then maybe you could show me around the village a little, we'll be here for awhile after all" Haku held out his hand and she took it with a grateful smile before he pulled her onto her feet smoothly.

She nearly stumbled but managed to right herself at the last second to avoid falling flat on her face again "Why exactly are you putting yourself through extensive evasion training day in and day out" Zabuza demanded once they were seated in a booth at the tea shop.

Sakura turned her emerald eyes on him "I'm a medic ninja, well not exactly I don't have my license yet, they told me that the hospital was full and didn't need another one, but one of the rules is to have near perfect evasion skills cause a caught medic is a dead one" she explained easily.

"And so is the rest of the team the medic is on" the fifteen year old guessed the rest that had been left unsaid, no wonder she could dodge efficiently she wanted to be able to become a medic ninja that could rival the Legendary Sannin Tsunade Senju, everyone knew that woman.

The girl nodded her head and sat back to relax when a hand slammed down on their booth table "Billboard brow it's been forever since we saw each other, did you know that I'm gonna be in the Chunin Exams" a familiar obnoxious voice filled the air before something was shoved in her face.

"Ack Ino-pig what the hell, Kakashi-sensei is gonna enter my team and I to so don't go bragging and grow the hell up already for kami sake" she shoved the paper away an angry tick bulging a vein out on her forehead at that bloody awful nickname.

Pupilless blue eyes widened "What that's not fair, I was supposed to be th…..ow what was that for" Ino winced as her foot was stomped on and she took several steps away from the table to avoid having that happen again.

"Because the world isn't fair, that's just something your going to have to get over and don't you know it's rude to interrupt someone when their talking, should have known that you wouldn't have gained any brains in your head after becoming a genin" Sakura snorted callously.

Ino's eyes watered at the harsh tone "Yo..You bloody pink haired demon I hate you and wish you would have just died when we were eight" the blonde snapped rushing away, Sakura sighed and shook her head.

It was quiet for a few minutes before a new person entered the tea shop "Ah that would do it, girls are troublesome" a raven haired boy came to a stop at the table, then without asking sat down as if he didn't have a care in the world.

Zabuza and Haku were in disbelief "Aren't you worried she'll snap at you to" Zabuza snorted eyeing the young boy warily, he couldn't quite place the name, but he definitely looked similar to someone he'd seen in his bingo book.

"Of Sakura, no, I'm not one that will stupidly incite her wrath like Ino, it's to troublesome and such a drag anyway, Shikamaru Nara" Shikamaru introduced himself in that same lazy manner that all Nara's possessed.

Sakura rolled her eyes "And just how do you know Sakura if we may ask Shikamaru-san" Haku inquired eyeing the closeness in which the boy sat to Sakura, and the fact the girl didn't care in the least that he was sitting so near to her.

"Classmates Haku, we were in the same class during all seven years at the academy, by the way what are you doing here, if girls are so troublesome" the pinkette raised a brow at her former classmate turned fellow genin.

Shikamaru straightened properly "My old man actually, apparently your sensei told him that you were smart and wanted to test your intelligence levels through a game of shogi" the Nara Heir explained his presence there in the tea shop.

Her eye twitched "That damn Kakashi-sensei it's as if he's trying to make things harder for me, do you think your father would mind a couple of tag-a-longs" she gestured to the duo sitting in the opposite booth who nodded, not wanting to part with her just yet.

"Nah just to warn you my mom has a love all things pink and when she see's your hair she'll hug you and probably try to crush your lungs in the process" the raven haired boy warned as the trio paid for their lunch and hurried from the tea shop.

And down the streets to the Nara Compound, where the lot of them were let through without so much as a problem and all the way to the back of the Compound where his house was located "Dad brought Sakura like you asked" Shikamaru called.

Brown eyes narrowed as they took off their shoes to be polite just as his mother rounded the corner to greet them, he leaped hastily out of the way "Oh my gosh it's true you really do have natural pink hair" Yoshino Nara didn't hesitate in trying to break Sakura's spine with a hug.

Not to mention it was difficult to breathe with the bone crushing hug "M..Mr..Mrs. N..Nara c..can't breathe" Sakura gasped out tapping the woman gently on the arm to hopefully be released to her relief the woman did let her go.

"Goodness I just can't believe how adorable you are, you wouldn't consider dating my Shikamaru-kun would you" the Nara Matriarch grabbed her son and threw him at the young girl who was definitely noteworthy if her sensei was bragging about her intelligence.

Sakura was stunned speechless "Pretty sure Sakura doesn't hold any sort of feelings for me like that Mom and stop trying to throw me at every girl you meet that's my age troublesome" Shikamaru groaned.

" _You know Sakura-chan he is kind of cute in a sort of abstract way"_ and Kushina didn't make anything better by pointing out every single boy that she came into contact with either, it was like having two moms, only one was a ghost and the other was still alive.

Yoshino stared imploringly at Sakura in hopes the girl would speak "Uh ah um, sorry Mrs. Nara, Shikamaru's just a friend" she winced trying not to hurt anyone's feelings, it was Kushina's fault, this started with Shino and now a mess was forming on her hands.

"Pity oh well your here for a game of shogi with my husband, he's right through here in the sitting room" Yoshino pointed releasing her son and vanishing into the kitchen, Shikamaru blew out a breath he'd thought sure that she was going to go berserk.

In all this the two tag-a-longs had been silent "Well that was slightly interesting" Zabuza commented as if he was use to random outbursts that a female had on a daily basis, technically he was but that was besides the point.

Tsunami was a very scary woman and he swore last time she channeled chakra into her fist while being a civilian they still had access to her chakra, but the point was, her punch had hurt just a tad bit more than usual.

Haku was quiet though as they entered the sitting room "Ah there you are Haruno-san and you two are" Shikaku Nara was waiting at a low table, shogi board set up on it, and an empty pillow at the other end that Sakura took after nodding politely to the Nara Patriarch.

"We're visitors, I'm Haku and that's Zabuza, we just came to watch the match if you don't mind" Haku finally spoke, he was worried, how many other boys did the girl he held a slight interest in hang around, did she like one of them.

Shikaku nodded in understanding "Not at all and Haruno-san you do know how to play shogi right" the Nara Patriarch directed his gaze onto the young girl sitting in his living room hands folded politely in her lap.

"I do Shikaku-sama as it's one of my favorite, if I had known Shikamaru knew how to play I would have had a partner to play with ages ago" she snickered lightly taking the mickey out of her fellow genin for the moment.

Who rolled his eyes and flopped down on the couch while the other was taken up by the unexpected guests "Good so lets see how intelligent you are Haruno-san, you have the first move" Shikaku gestured for her to go.

Her eyes scanned the board mentally mapping out a battle strategy before pushing a piece forward "I don't know exactly what Kakashi-sensei told you, but he was probably exaggerating a little bit" Sakura struck up a conversation after making her move.

" _Just a little bit that man can be outrageous sometimes with his wild excuses and I've followed him on more than one account, he lies every single time and just reads that book of his"_ Hashirama snorted and got a blink in response.

That signaled she'd heard him but was gonna focus mostly on the game "Hmm perhaps, but you are from a civilian family, as I heard no one expected you to actually make it as a shinobi" the raven haired jonin commented.

Pushing her buttons intentionally to make her lose her concentration and make a bad move, her eyes narrowed "Maybe that's more to the fact that I have pink hair and it paints a larger target on my back since it's difficult to blend in" the pinkette nodded in agreement.

Not losing her temper that was something she understood more about herself than anyone else did "Hows it going so far, who's winning" Yoshino returned with drinks and passed them around to the people sitting in her living room.

"Thanks Ma'am" Zabuza thanked the woman grudgingly at least she wasn't throwing things at him yet, so long as he didn't piss her off, that's why he'd mostly been sitting in silence watching the game that was still in progress.

"We're only on the third move Yoshino so it's to hard to say who's winning just yet" the Nara Patriarch explained carefully knowing better than to ignore his wife, who would nag until his ears bled and then there would go the nice relaxing game of shogi.

Though he definitely had ulterior motives "Might I ask how that will determine where her intelligence levels put her at" the raven haired teen couldn't help but ask, but the answer came from the man's son.

Who they'd all thought had fallen asleep "Shogi is a very complex game and my Dad is the master at it, he works at T&I so depending on how well she does during the game will determine what level her intelligence is at" Shikamaru piped in.

"Exactly so if I manage to make it over ten moves that would be chunin level, twenty five for Jonin and if I beat the game then that would be considered higher than what a genin should have" Sakura announced easily comprehending what she'd been told.

Oh kami she hoped she only had chunin level intelligence levels or she was so screwed _"Relax Sakura-chan he is a master at this game so don't worry it will probably be difficult even for you to make it to even twelve moves"_ the violet eyed red haired woman assured.

Sakura bit her lip scanning the board a little more cautiously now and Shikaku immediately picked up on that as he pushed another piece forward making it four moves into the game, her eyes flickered across the board again before settling on her fifth piece.

He frowned realizing what she was trying to do "What's with that expression of wariness Haruno-san" he spoke suddenly spooking her as she was focusing so intently on the game and she jumped in fright.

"Caution and wariness are two different things Shikaku-sama" Sakura rattled off making her sixth move, that was half hopefully only six moves left before the game was over and that he'd hopefully not caught on to what she was doing.

It was true and she was just stating facts "Hmm true" Shikaku nodded pushing his piece forward which was countered by Sakura's seventh piece, she was a smart one, could probably stand on equal grounds with his son.

But fifteen minutes and eleven moves later making it eighteen in total "High Chunin levels that's kind of crazy what do you do all day read books on shogi or something" the Nara Heir gaped seeing the board and how close his dad had come to being beaten.

Sakura just looked relieved as she nodded politely bid the Nara's farewell and hurried off "See you tomorrow Sakura" Haku waved glad to be out of the compound and he did, and for the rest of her break before it was time for team training. 


	9. Of Breaks and Training Part 2 (End)

The last two weeks of training Team Seven had were like hell because their sensei decided to switch up the team they always trained with "Today you'll meet an old friend of mine, Might Gai and his students their all a year older than you" Kakashi greeted.

As they stepped onto the training grounds three hours late like usual "And who are those guys, pretty sure they aren't members of this village" Neji Hyuga pointed out in a matter of fact tone while gesturing to the extra's on the field.

"I have just as much right to be here as you do, besides I'm soon going to be a Leaf Shinobi" Karin huffed proving to have as much of an attitude as the Uchiha on team seven on a regular day and her best friend sighed with a small smile of amusement.

Neji flicked his lavender irises in the girls direction before glancing to the unknown males and spying their headbands "We weren't aware Mist and Leaf were on friendly terms" the girl with buns in her hair stated.

"Technically no but they have special permission to be here Tenten-san from Hokage-sama themselves" Sakura got fed up with the suspicion being directed at the duo that were becoming fast important people to her.

For a moment things were quiet "Just how is it you know Tenten's name" the last remaining genin, with hair in a bowl cut and thick bushy eyebrows inquired gently sensing the rising tension in the air and not wanting things to go to hell decided to be peacemaker.

Surprisingly the answer didn't come from Sakura, but from one of her other teammates "Hinata-chan is our best friend and she talks about her cousin and his teammates, can't mistake those Byakugan eyes and I remember the description she gave once" Naruto piped in bravely.

Also remembering what else his pretty Hinata-chan said about her cousin "Does that Hyuga tell you everything kami and here I am yet again being left out of things" Sasuke sulked off to the side not happy in the least.

Every eye turned his way "That is besides the point you have most youthful students Kakashi, so which one of you would like to go against Neji" Gai, as he'd been named flashed an all to wide grin at the younger genin.

Utter silence met his question until the lone girl on the team was shoved forward by Sasuke "Are you sure that's wise Hatake, he could crush her like a twig" Zabuza wandered over eyeing the brunette with lavender eyes warily.

Kakashi shifted his lone onyx eye onto the person speaking to him "Plus even with her skills she'll be no match for him" Haku nodded quietly, they'd sparred for an hour every day of the week, he would know where her levels currently sat.

"Guess I'll be facing you Neji-san and just so you know I've studied chakra points extensively, know where every single one of them are and have a trick up my sleeve to prevent you from striking them" the pinkette stated simply.

Standing before her opponent bravely "So you are the girl that made shy little useless Hinata-sama gain a confidence and her training improve in leaps and bounds, I look forward to fighting against you" the brunette gave a mock bow.

" _Ooh if he wasn't such a jerk you should totally kiss him Sakura-chan"_ Kushina blurted out suddenly watching as the others were paired up against each other, Naruto vs Tenten, Sasuke vs Lee and then the spars began.

It was clear there was tension between Neji and Sakura _"Don't you think she's experienced enough males kissing her Kushina"_ Hashirama deadpanned keeping his onyx eyes glued to the fight happening before them.

Kakashi frowned deeply "You know perhaps Gai that pairing her against Neji wasn't a good idea" the silver haired nin grimaced suddenly as the ground shattered, his sole female student had serious anger issues with the boy she was sparring against.

That wasn't good "Why do you say that oh youthful rival of mi…kami what the hell have you been teaching her Kakashi" the raven haired weird Jonin gaped at the amount of destruction and there Neji was sporting a couple of scrapes in the ensuing chaos.

Blood dripped down his arm "He hasn't been teaching her anything, that's all on the brat, she self taught herself all of the skills she knows" the raven haired rogue from Mist threw out there, having seen her train for an entire week in all manners of things.

Grudgingly Kakashi nodded in agreement "That anger is different than the one she displays when she's angry with her teammates or when someone simply picks on her forehead" the raven haired fifteen year old noted seeing the fury etched into those emerald orbs.

"Looks like you have a good teammate in your ranks huh Naruto" Tenten smiled knowing she had her opponent beat but drawing out the fight so that she wouldn't be bored, Naruto knew he was beaten as well, he didn't care though.

Cause in the next moment he nodded "Yep though Sakura-chan kind of has a personal issue with your teammate, what he's done to Hinata-chan is not acceptable, family is to be treasured no matter what" the blonde recited an earlier lesson he'd been given.

Blue eyes shifting in his distant cousins direction the only family he had and he would treasure her like never before "You can do it Naruto-kun" the red haired girl with ruby eyes cheered in the next moment looking happier than ever.

Tenten considered the statement before nodding in understanding it wasn't right of Neji to take his anger out on Hinata for something that wasn't her fault but until it was beat into him then he would continue to do the same things he had for several years now.

" _Mm Sakura-chan maybe you should stop now, your letting your anger blind you and that's not good"_ the violet eyed red haired woman warned and Sakura's viridian orbs cleared of the fury, allowing her to focus on dodging and making the occasional strike on her opponent.

Her sensei let out a sigh of relief as the tension faded _"Nicely done Sakura-chan just remember don't let personal feelings enter a fight unless strictly necessary"_ the brunette announced wisely knowing it was difficult for his young protege.

"The cherry blossom is most youthful wouldn't you agree Sasuke-san" Lee exclaimed in the next moment as the spars continued raging on between the six genin, it was like war had broken out between the lot of them.

Before each fight was called and due to having more experience and training longer not a single member of Team Seven won their spar "Ha finally someone that can beat even you Haruno" the raven haired boy smirked speaking in a smug tone of voice.

Sakura whipped around glowering furiously at Sasuke until he shrunk back "So says the one that lost a fight against a girl simply because he was biased and thought she was weak" the only pink haired girl in existence snapped.

Naruto gaped "Is now really the time to be arguing about that sort of thing, I think Kakashi-sensei's got something to tell us" the Uzumaki boy waved his arms stepping between his two teammates and hoping he wouldn't get beat into the ground for being reckless.

Once again the tension faded "What is it about Neji Hyuga that pisses you off so much Sakura-chan" the Copy Ninja asked since the others were gone and out of earshot, he hadn't thought she could get that angry until now.

She turned to face him fury in her eyes "For years now he has been mentally abusing Hinata for the sake of personal gratification and everyone wonders why she's shy, has no confidence and wouldn't even say boo to a mouse, but one has to look no further than her bloody fucking cousin" she stated.

"What do you mean by mentally abusing her" Haku prodded not liking where this conversation was suddenly going even if he had no business entering it in the first place he couldn't keep his mouth shut because he'd met Hinata.

Emerald eyes flashed his way "Tells her she can't do something, that she's to weak a disappointment in the clan and that she doesn't deserve to be the heiress, hearing that every single day of her life since she was six has broken her down and she feels as if she won't amount to anything like he says" Sakura sighed.

It was obvious not even Hinata's new friend hadn't even known that "You've been friends with her since you were what ten, just how do you know all that anyway" Karin frowned deeply herself, never having even imagined.

"Her bodyguard Ko-san noticed the changes in Hinata after spending the night with me and asked that I continue looking after her well-being, all my hard work though is undone because of Neji which really ticks me off to epic proportions, all he has to do is say one little word and she's broken all over again" she rubbed her forehead.

Naruto lowered his gaze "Sounds like the girl needs to just move out and get away from him" Zabuza offered what he thought was a simple solution but even Sasuke knew that was impossible because of Hinata's standing.

"That's impossible, Hinata's the Clan Heiress, if she were to move out of the compound she would be branded as a traitor and possibly forced into servitude by her own family" Sasuke grimaced never having realized that other clan children had it tough.

Zabuza grimaced himself and shrugged "Ahem if I could have your attention you three before you go running off to do whatever it is you do, I wanted to inform you that I have nominated you for the Chunin Exams" the silver haired nin cleared his throat.

His three genin turned as he presented the submission forms "We're all in right even you Sakura" the Uchiha glanced to his sole female teammate who had trepidation in her gaze, it put him instantly on edge.

"Of course Sasuke to keep you brainless idiots out of the trouble" the pinkette snorted harsher than she intended and Naruto looked just a tiny bit hurt until she flashed him a small reassuring smile and the hurt melted away as if it had never been there in the first place.

Kakashi watched his little students interacting before something came to mind "Sakura-chan did you ever figure out a dream/goal to work towards" the Copy Ninja inquired suddenly and she turned to face him with a surprised look.

It was obvious until that moment she hadn't even thought on it in the least "Wait a minute you still don't have a dream Sakura-chan, you have to have a dream or goal like Teme and I, and Kakashi-sensei to even if he didn't tell us anything beyond his name about him" Naruto waved his arms.

She rubbed the back of her neck brow creased "Hmm well let's see….to be honest I never really thought on it before" Sakura frowned considering the question "Perhaps to protect the future of the future of the Leaf Village and all the people in it" she finally settled on.

"If I didn't know better I would say you were Lord First Reincarnated with a bit of an old friend of mine mixed in there" Kakashi chuckled ruffling her long pink hair and Sakura smiled up at him and batted his hand away with a huff.

A moment later "Does that mean we're free now or not" Sasuke grumbled thinking of better things he could be doing, Kakashi shifted his lone onyx eye onto the Uchiha before nodding his head in agreement.

"Now shoo with the lot of you, I'd like to read my book in peace" the silver haired nin vanished in a puff of smoke, Sakura rolled her eyes fanning the smoke away until Haku was right there at her side like he had been for the last week.

Peering at her with those dark brown eyes "I'm going to go hang out with uh with those two" Karin disappeared in the next moment after her distant cousin and Sasuke making only three people left on the training grounds.

Invisible to everyone else _"Come on Sakura-chan go take a walk with Haku, perhaps he'll kiss you again"_ Kushina was definitely rooting the ebony haired teenager on as even Zabuza left his apprentice alone with the girl.

" _Really Kushina what is it with you and having Sakura-chan kiss, I get it you want her to experience those sorts of things but isn't Shino and Haku enough, who's gonna be next"_ Hashirama grimaced unable to watch.

When Haku took advantage of being alone with Sakura and backed her into the tree "Sakura-chan I have a question to ask you, don't worry I'm not jealous or anything and I know we aren't exactly together, but was I your first kiss" Haku questioned gently.

Her face went redder than an apple at that "N..No um I kind of tripped once and landed on one of my classmates, we ended up kissing" Sakura mumbled unable to meet the older boy's eyes as her skin turned red and she blushed from the roots of her hair all the way down to her toes.

Haku had never seen anyone blush that bad before "Relax Sakura, come let's take a walk I'm still very curious about your village after all" the raven haired teen smiled retreating a ways to give the girl a moment to calm down.

"The Leaf Village is pretty expansive, oh that's right you haven't seen where we usually meet" the pinkette exclaimed and with that they were off to the bridge and the little stream that ran underneath it, the place was wonderful.

And they spent an hour there just watching the clouds on the bank of the stream, it was on their way to get lunch that they ran into unexpected trouble "Boy what's going on" just as Zabuza joined them and a trio of kids ran past.

On their tail was Ami Himekari, followed by Naruto, the five of them rounded the corner, then came multiple cries, Sakura went rigid and she was off around the corner in the next moment emerald eyes widening at the scene before her.

"If you know what's best for you, you will let that boy go immediately or be thrown out of the village for attempting to harm Hokage-sama's grandson" flew from her mouth as the brunette that was definitely old enough to have learned manners to behave in another village reared his fist back.

Though at the warning he paused and all eyes turned onto her "Yeah and what will you do if I don't let him go ugly forehead girl" the brunette sneered going for the obvious insult and the purple haired girl inched away.

As killing intent filled the air "I'm outta here" the girl stated and then was gone in a flash not sticking around to find out what became of the other girl, the trio of kids or whoever else was there in the alley.

Sakura's lips pressed together "Go straight to the Hokage and since you are obviously from a different country you should know your manners unless you also want to be disqualified from the Chunin Exams as I'm guessing that's the reason your here for" she crossed her arms.

Lifting a slender pink brow on the older boy "N..Now wait a minute Pinky, Kankuro was just messing around right and wasn't really going to hurt the kid" the teal eyed blonde jumped in at that realizing how dire the situation was.

"Come on you don't actually believe this punk that this little brat is actually related to the Hokage do you Temari" the one named Kankuro grumbled still holding the little boy up by his shirt and scarf, tears in his blue eyes.

Temari eyed the silent duo while the younger blonde kept the other two kids back "I do believe it actually Kankuro let the kid go or we'll have even more trouble being kicked out of the chunin exams for starting trouble, not by the Hokage, but by him" Temari shuddered.

It was a little worrying who this him was, Kankuro growled but dropped the little boy in his clutches who immediately went scrambling for his savior just as they got a newcomer "You smell like blood" a deep gravelly voice came from behind Sakura.

A chill crawled down her spine as hands rested on her shoulders "Lot's and lots of it, almost as if you've bathed in it, it coats your skin, your hair, everything" that gravelly voice continued to speak and Sakura didn't dare turn her head.

To see who it was that was stood behind her, for fear of fainting and she perhaps thought that maybe the boy was mistaking himself for her because the smell of blood came from him strongly, it was sickening and a lot worse than the few times she'd been covered in it.

" _Whatever you do Sakura-chan don't piss that boy off, he's a Jinchuuriki to the one tailed beast the Sand Spirit Shukaku and he's close to the surface slowly breaking down at the seal that wasn't made right"_ the First Hokage warned suddenly.

And her skin paled immediately in response _"Say something Sakura-chan anything to get out of that situation"_ the Uzumaki woman prodded knowing how dangerous the situation was at that current moment in time.

Sakura steeled her nerves and took one step forward before turning to face the boy speaking to her and graced him with a light smile "Well I do end up covered in blood on plenty of occasions and I haven't exactly been home yet" and she even threw in a small laugh for props.

The boy had red hair and pale green eyes that held a blood lust in them "Hmm and here I thought you were mute and couldn't speak" he taunted on purpose in hopes to rile the girl up and piss her off, he wanted to fight her.

"Nah I just like seeing who I'm talking to that's all" Sakura announced in a careful tone keeping her eyes locked with his and shoving down all of the fear she had in that single moment as she saw her death in his eyes.

Those pale green eyes narrowed just as a blur shot down beside her "Wh….what the hell was that for Sakura" it was Sasuke, she elbowed his side harshly and gave him a death glare of her own that plainly said speak or die.

Sasuke kept his mouth shut after that "Either way I apologize for my siblings rudeness I am Gaara and we three here will be participating in the Chunin Exams" the red head finally introduced himself with a smirk on his lips.

Indicating he wanted her to do the same "Sakura Haruno is my name and we'll also be in the exam" the pinkette nodded and then in a swirl of sand the boy was gone, behind her once more and she quickly turned to watch the trio of Sand Shinobi walk away.

Upon vanishing around the corner "Why the hell did you elbow me Sakura that wasn't nice and I was only trying to help" Sasuke rounded on his teammate not liking that she hadn't let him help when the situation had clearly been bad.

"Yeah and if you'd shot off at the mouth in your usual cocky arrogant way the lot of us would be dead right now no doubt" Sakura glared right back arms crossed over her chest as the two silent spectators stepped forward.

Curious as to what she meant one of them couldn't help but ask "What do you mean brat, though now that you mention it, blood lust wafted from him in waves and what the hell was up with that gourd" Zabuza questioned.

Sakura blew out a breath "I..I think he's a Jinchuuriki, he wouldn't have hesitated to kill any of us if one wrong move had been made because his seal is coming undone and I'm guessing he carries sand in it to wield as a weapon" the pink haired kunoichi explained.

Naruto instantly paled "A jinchuuriki, do you really think that Sakura-chan" the blonde gulped baby blue eyes flashing in fear as it hit him, that could be him, out of control and insane to the point where if someone pissed him off he'd just kill that person.

"What exactly is a Jinchuuriki anyway" Haku the only one who hadn't been informed of these things before questioned and Zabuza grimaced he didn't have a clue as to what to tell the boy so glanced to the girl.

In hopes she'd give an accurate explanation "Jinchuuriki or tailed beast containers are living sacrifices to seal away one of the tailed beasts in the world, there are nine of them, they are chakra beasts of destruction and yes Naruto I think that and his seal is coming undone which makes him more dangerous" Sakura didn't mince her words.

Before coming forward with Konohamaru still attached to her hip "And Naruto you will never be like that, that I can promise okay" her eyes softened because without a doubt she knew what he was thinking and damned if it didn't jerk at her heart strings.

To blue eyes filled with relief met with kind peridot colored eyes "Guess that since you've got everything under control I'm leaving now" the Uchiha disappeared leaving the rest of his team in the alley and their two guests.

"You're one of them to huh boy" the rogue from Mist immediately caught on as he just now realized that things could have been pretty bad for him and Haku if they'd continued fighting against the Leaf Shinobi and the beast sealed inside Naruto had broken through somehow.

Though at the question the boy lowered his gaze "Yes I also have one of those things sealed inside of me, but why Sakura-chan is he so different, what made him like that" Naruto didn't understand how someone could be that crazy.

Her lips pursed in consideration "One is the seal, it wasn't done right so that allows the tailed beast to influence it's hosts actions, two did you not see how his own siblings acted around him, their terrified, probably been like that since he was a kid, that's probably why" Sakura explained.

"Wait a second you think that because of those two reasons that boy is like that" the ebony haired fifteen year old frowned deeply not liking the conversation in the least but unable to stop listening because he was curious.

She shook her head "No, most likely he was conditioned to be like that, an essential tool for his village an ace for the Sand Village or something traumatic happened to him, I can't say for sure, there are probably various reasons he's like that and I would never know" she said.

"By the way you three what are you doing skipping lessons at the academy" emerald orbs suddenly locked onto the three eight year old's huddling together, who all jumped, then scrambled like hell from the alley to avoid getting scolded.

A "Thank you Sakura-nee, Naruto-ni" falling from their lips as they ran like mad to get back to the academy, even if they were going to get scolded, it wouldn't be quite like the scolding they would have gotten from Sakura.

"Even kids are scared of you Sakura-chan right well I'm gonna go find Karin-chan" Naruto rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly then vanished just as quickly as the three academy students had to avoid being scolded also.

Sakura rubbed her forehead and healed the headache without thought "Girl could you do that right from the beginning, when we were holding you captive" Zabuza questioned roughly eyeing the green glow that faded at his question.

The girl turned towards him "Yes I've been practicing the mystical palm since I was eight" the pinkette nodded lightly knowing that he was frustrated, because a tick formed on his forehead and the vein looked as if it was about to burst.

"I could have used your skills to heal faster Tch damn brat, if you need me Haku, I'll be with Hatake" the raven haired male turned on his heel and vanished leaving the two teenagers alone to laugh quietly.

Haku was definitely amused "Come on Sakura-chan let's go get lunch alright it's on me this time" the fifteen year old held out his hand, there was a brief moment of hesitation before her hand slid into his with ease.

As they started walking towards the restaurant of choice it was always the tea shop "Are you and Zabuza gonna stay here clear through the Chunin Exams" Sakura inquired lightly once their orders had arrived and she'd started eating her rice and curry.

"Well I have no idea what Zabuza-sama is going to do really, but it's probable, I think he secretly misses living in a shinobi village, not to say he doesn't care for that little village, because he likes Tsunami-san, just won't admit it" Haku laughed.

Sakura blinked her emerald orbs in response "You know I thought something fishy was going on between the two of them, it's like he would purposefully incite Tsunami-chan's anger to see her eyes lit up with fury" she giggled remembering the few days they had.

The teenager sitting opposite her nodded in agreement "Best not let him catch us talking about it though or training will be twice as hard for me" the raven haired teenager let his lips quirk upwards in amusement as they continued eating.

Before it was finally time to split up "See you later Haku, try not to cause Zabuza-san to much grief" the pinkette waved rounding a corner and vanishing from sight as she hurried home for the day, earlier than usual.

Only at the insistence of her two ghostly companions _"We're going to have you write a new seal, that we'll put on Gaara to suppress one tail"_ Kushina explained once she was locked in her room behind a barrier/sound proofing tag.

" _Exactly because I don't fancy having a tailed beast raging around our village again, not to say it was your fault Kushina for what happened, but that had been agonizing to watch"_ Hashirama cleared his throat looking more serious than ever.

Sakura knew the whole story as well but didn't comment instead pulled out a blank tag, ink brush and ink well then on the two ghosts instructions began drawing the new seal that would help Gaara come back to his senses.

It wouldn't exactly change him, but it would help and then hopefully she could get past his defenses and help him come to terms with whatever had happened to him, "For Gaara" Sakura announced when it was done, jade eyes flashing with determination.

Like she always said the will of fire had been instilled in her and her dream as she'd decided on earlier was to protect the future of every single person in the Leaf Village and the future of the Leaf Village itself.

Hashirama and Kushina nodded taking the seal and vanished leaving Sakura alone, it wasn't hard to figure out when the seal had been activated as the blood lust even she could feel diminished greatly allowing her and several others to breathe easier.

Not long after that Karin came back, they ate supper, had showers and finally crawled into bed to get some shut eye for the next day, which was basically a repeat of the other days, and carried on up to nine days, making it a whole week and three days that had passed.

Until Sakura once again encountered Gaara, this time alone and he was also alone _"You've got this Sakura-chan take a chance and befriend him, he's a lonely boy like my Naruto-kun use to be, show him what friendship is all about"_ and the red head urged her to befriend him.

" _J..Just try to be careful Sakura-chan alright, he's still a little unstable even though Shukaku has been suppressed and can't influence Gaara's actions any longer"_ the brunette said caution in his tone because that was all he could do.

Sakura blew out a breath and approached confidently "Hello Gaara-san lovely day isn't it" the pinkette spoke after flaring her chakra to announce her presence, she didn't want to die that afternoon after all.

Gaara turned sharply pale green eyes narrowed trying to determine if she was a threat no doubt "What do you want, are you here to yell at me as well" the red head turned his head away, brooding as only a teenage boy could.

Well that definitely wasn't a reaction she thought she would get "No that's not it at all Gaara-san, why have people been yelling at you" her brow creased in confusion, obviously the boy had been more influenced by the tailed beast inside of him than they'd all thought.

Because he wasn't acting like how he had before, almost submissive and like Kushina had told her lonely, it shined within the depths of his pale green irises "My older siblings and sensei, they keep talking about some sort of plan that I want no part of" he admitted quietly.

"Ignore them Gaara-san, if they can't be the siblings that you deserve then they aren't worth the effort" Sakura couldn't believe how drastic the changes were in the preteen boy before her just by using a seal to suppress Shukaku.

And she was definitely going to take advantage of the moment "I need them to make the effort you don't understand how I have to prove my worth to them, th..that's why I'm going to go through with the plan" Gaara stated suddenly.

Sakura felt her heart drop into her stomach "Gaara-san you shouldn't have to prove anything to them, their family they should love you regardless of having to go through any sort of plan" the pinkette said softly.

Feeling for the boy in front of her "How would you know, does your entire existence rid on being acknowledged no then don't speak to me of such things" the red head spat becoming more like the other Gaara she knew.

Things were getting tricky now "Maybe I don't Gaara-san but I can tell when someones lonely, it shines within the depths of your eyes, you want to be acknowledged and I acknowledge you regardless of some stupid plan their trying to force you into" she locked gazes with him.

Pale green irises widened "You don't know me, so how can you say you acknowledge me, accept me for everything I've done, I've killed people for less just to be recognized" Gaara glared angrily arms crossed tightly over his chest.

"I've killed as well Gaara-san, probably not as many as you have, but I didn't do it to be recognized, I did it to protect the ones I consider friends, love Gaara-san that is what you should strive for to be acknowledged for, love them despite their hate of you and you can overcome anything" Sakura explained gently.

Gaara froze "Love gives you the strength to kill in order to protect but why, I was always taught to love only myself and that power is the only thing that will be recognized" he was definitely confused not understanding anything being told to him.

And once again her heart jerked painfully "Then you were taught wrong it doesn't matter what anyone else thinks so long as you hold your belief's close to your heart, fight for what you believe is true not what someone else tries to force on you" she murmured.

Stepping closer carefully eyeing the guard just a tad bit warily then placed her hand on his shoulder to smile as brightly as possible "Love can overcome anything even hatred" the red haired preteen mused considering what he'd just been told.

"Yes only if you have the will to make it possible, do what you believe is right and don't let anyone sway you from your decision, I have to go, but I'll see you at the Chunin Exams" Sakura patted his shoulder once gently, then was gone.

Leaving the boy alone to sort through the new possibilities that had been opened up to him as she headed home late in the day _"At the very least Sakura-chan he won't be much of a problem"_ the Uzumaki woman floating along after her commented.

For once not going on about having her kiss as many boys as possible _"Indeed Sakura and you might have just turned the tide in our favor, if you can find him tomorrow, bring Naruto along, remember many ripples can change the tide more thoroughly"_ the First Hokage announced.

Sakura nodded lightly and the next day when there were only four days left before the start of the Chunin Exams, she dragged Naruto along with her "Sakura-chan where are we going" the blonde sulked but didn't argue as he didn't want to be whacked.

When he saw who they were headed for his skin paled "Relax I think you two could be good friends, just be nice alright" the pinkette warned under her breath as they came to a stop before the depressed looking Gaara.

Clearly things still weren't going well for him, but at their arrival he definitely perked up a little "I thought for sure we wouldn't see each other again, is that the one you killed for" Gaara inquired looking at the blonde.

"Not exactly, but I would kill for Naruto, he's been one of my best friends since we were really little since we were seven I believe, and I thought you two could find a few things in common as well" Sakura smiled brightly.

"Yeah, yeah" Naruto nodded launching into a round of chatter giving Gaara no choice but to talk because he wouldn't let the red head be silent the entire time and the three of them sat there and chatted for three hours.

Before it was time to head off "I'll be here tomorrow" the red head explained not wanting to admit it but he wanted to get to know these people more, his first friends regardless of what anyone thought, he wouldn't bow under pressure anymore.

"And we'll see you tomorrow then Gaara-san" the pink haired kunoichi waved as he vanished in a swirl of sand "Tomorrow we'll bring along Karin-chan, something is off and if we can sway him to our side then whatever is coming won't be so bad" she finally explained.

Naruto's blue eyes widened "I got it, but he is pretty cool and I hate to think that we're just doing this to avoid trouble" he frowned, his friend certainly was strange, but he didn't think she had ulterior motives.

Sakura shook her head "We're not, that's only a perk hopefully" Sakura smiled lightly as they headed off and the next day Karin joined them, and the day after that Sasuke and Haku, until it was finally time for the Chunin Exams.

By that point she was certain that Gaara was on their side, his two siblings and sensei had been ignoring him, so no matter what happened things would go in Leaf's favor as she spent the entire night packing things in a pack to be ready for the exam and sealing it in a scroll to keep on her.

Then after that she crawled into her all to large bed after taking a shower, flipped the covers over her body after getting as comfortable as she dared and set a timer to wake up early to eat breakfast before finally falling asleep.


	10. Chunin Exams Rounds 1&2 plus Preliminary

It was finally the morning of the start of the Chunin Exams _"And remember to avoid area's with no security camera's"_ Kushina rambled becoming more nervous than the girl her soul was attached to as she walked down the streets to the building for the first part of the exam.

Her face and eyes clearly sporting determination and the will to make it through anything no matter what came her way _"Did you remember to pack the flare"_ Hashirama asked when the three of them arrived at the building early, way to early to be precise.

And found themselves the first ones there "Yes Kushina-chan I memorized that map so many times and of course Hashirama-sama, I brought six flares, two for each of us" Sakura nodded, glancing this way and that warily in case someone was trying to eavesdrop on her.

Not more than ten minutes later someone was stood next to her and Sakura turned sharply at the flaring of chakra only to breathe out a sigh of relief "Pardon me for startling you Sakura" it was Gaara and once they'd gotten past all of his defenses, he'd turned into the sweetest person imaginable.

Emerald eyes softened "No worries Gaara, are you ready for the first round of the Chunin Exams" the pinkette asked relaxing knowing that he wouldn't allow anything to harm those he considered friends and she was lucky enough to take the spot of his first best friend in the entire world.

Which gave her extra special privileges his words not hers "Hardly, those two are still ignoring me and I know things are only going to get worse from here on out, I actually I could just go home" the red head grumbled in that low gravelly tone of voice.

Sakura frowned "Then how about a good luck charm to help you through the first and second parts of the Chunin Exams" the pink haired kunoichi offered, not really believing she was actually going to do this, but she was definitely curious.

Gaara turned at the exact same moment she was leaning forward to kiss his cheek, to ask what this supposed good luck charm was going to be only to end up in a lip lock _"Oh my gosh Sakura-chan that's so you know"_ the violet eyed red head gaped in surprise at the unexpected kiss.

While Hashirama closed his eyes not wanting to see anymore _"Must you try to give me a heart attack every moment of every single day"_ the brunette groaned wishing he could bash his head against some sort of wall or tree to get rid of the image burned into his retina's.

She wanted to tell him to stuff it and that he couldn't have a heart attack because he was already dead and ghosts couldn't have heart attacks, but settled for giving him a look that was entirely missed because his eyes were closed.

Just as Gaara jumped back, pale green eyes wide and mouth hanging open in astonishment "W..Was that the good luck charm you were going to give me" the preteen boy from Sand inquired, cheeks tinged pink in embarrassment.

Kushina let out an ear splitting squeal at the adorable sight the flushing red head made _"You are just so cute Gaara-kun, I want to hug you and squeeze and ooohh so much more you know"_ the Uzumaki woman exclaimed.

Hashirama let out a long suffering sigh _"Can someone please tell me how it is I ended up being stuck with this woman as a spirit again"_ the First Hokage muttered under his breath which earned a whack over the back of his head.

Their antics were promptly ignored by the two preteens standing in front of each other awkwardly "Actually I was going to kiss your cheek but you turned, so you can consider that kiss a good luck charm to, or I could give you something physical to help you through" Sakura rambled.

Blushing beet red herself wondering how it was always her that ended up getting kissed "Do you think I could have something physical and I'll give you some of my sand to rest around your wrist as a good luck charm" Gaara requested shyly.

That had definitely been his first kiss to say the least but he wasn't disappointed it had been his first friend that he'd been given it by, Sakura smiled and reached into her pouch for something she always carried on her and held it out.

It was taken carefully in a slightly larger hand and revealed to be a rock shaped like a leaf, the symbol of the village they were currently in, and in return some sand slithered from gourd on Gaara's back and fit snugly around Sakura's wrist.

Just as two familiar boys came racing down the street "And here I thought I'd be the first one here, why are you always before me Sakura" Sasuke groaned as he realized his sole female teammate was there at the building already along with Gaara.

Who they'd all befriended over the course of the last week "Hey Gaara and shut up Teme, do you have to be jealous about everything Sakura-chan does" Naruto snorted with a roll of his baby blue eyes which started an argument.

And Sakura promptly smacked both boys on the back of the head _"When are you going to learn my little Naruto-kun"_ Kushina shook her head, honestly her son was worse than she was back when she was his age.

Off to the side her ghostly partner in crime did the same _"At least he has Sakura-chan guiding him through life as a shinobi"_ Hashirama chuckled glancing around as others started showing up and soon it would be time to go in the building for the written portion of the Chunin Exams.

Sakura blew out a breath and Gaara became even more grumpier as his two siblings finally showed up "See you later Sakura, Naruto, Sasuke" the red head nodded quickening his pace to catch up with the duo and they vanished to wherever.

"Kind of sucks that they can't even see how great a guy their little brother is" the pinkette shook her head in disappointment, if she had a little sibling she wouldn't even be able to think about ignoring them, it would hurt to much really.

Naruto nodded "Yeah but we can't count them out just yet, someone just has to open their eyes right Sakura-chan" the blue eyed blonde glanced to his best friend, the first one to acknowledge him like she'd acknowledged Gaara and lots of other people.

Her eyes softened in response as she nodded with a smile "Probably won't be for a good long while, we'll just have to keep swaying him from them in the meantime" the raven haired preteen shrugged leaning against the tree next to his teammates.

Unseen to them Kushina's expression had softened as well _"Look at them Hashirama don't they just make the loveliest picture, ooh I wish I had a camera to snap a photo of them to remember for the rest of their lives you know"_ the violet eyed red haired woman sighed.

Onyx eyes were glued to the trio of genin that would no doubt in the future become such powerhouses that they would rival the Legendary Sannin themselves _"Me to Kushina, me to"_ the brunette nodded as the lot of them let silence blanket them for the next three hours.

Before they were finally allowed into the building to submit their forms, almost immediately Sakura and Sasuke sensed the genjutsu and shared a covert look over their oblivious teammates head as they walked up the steps to the second floor.

That was covered in a genjutsu to make it seem like the third floor _"That genjutsu won't work on Sakura-chan you know"_ the Uzumaki woman huffed having sensed the genjutsu herself unlike her oblivious son.

" _Indeed but play it safe for the moment Sakura-chan, don't draw attention onto yourself just yet"_ the First Hokage cautioned his little protege, who'd learned plenty from him and would grow into one of the most excellent kunoichi the Leaf Village could ever produce.

Sakura sent him an imperceptible nod and hung back "Don't say anything just yet, let's see how things play out first" the twelve year old pink haired girl explained when her two teammates stopped on either side of her.

Like she'd thought Naruto hadn't even sensed it "Genjutsu Dope, this is the second floor, not the third, but don't say anything I want to see what happens" the Uchiha warned as he saw Naruto opening his mouth to say something.

Only to snap it shut at the warning "I got it Teme, you don't have to tell me twice" the Uzumaki on the team flashed his teammates a whiskered grin as the three of them moved towards the wall and kept out of range of anything that would happen in the next several minutes.

The first thing that became apparent was that Tenten wasn't acting like her normal self probably trying to downplay her own abilities as the two obviously transformed Chunin that were usually posted at the gates punched the brown haired girl on her back.

It would take a lot more to hurt Tenten, who trained with weapons day in and day out, next was Lee, followed by their remaining teammate Neji and such a commotion had started up anyway that it was time to reveal the genjutsu for it was.

" _Now Sakura-chan mention the genjutsu now, if you guys dawdle to long you'll be disqualified for not turning in your submission forms"_ Kushina announced, the girl shot a look in her direction and blinked once to signal she understood.

Before pushing herself away from the wall and with her own teammates in tow walked forward "Cut it out with the genjutsu already Kotetsu-san, Izumo-san, we may be genin but we aren't stupid and I sensed the genjutsu from the moment we entered the building" Sakura said plainly.

"Yeah this is the second floor and we've wasted enough time as it is" Sasuke nodded arms crossed over his chest following Sakura's lead for the moment, wondering how she could play it so cool and act as if this whole situation wasn't any big deal.

Unseen to everyone but Sakura, Kushina nodded her head in acceptance _"Very nicely done Sakura-chan, now you three best be off to turn in those forms"_ Hashirama reminded yet again, not wanting the members of Team Seven to be disqualified for accidentally being late.

As the genjutsu was taken down "Wait a second since when was there a genjutsu" Naruto asked cluelessly as they headed down the hall ahead of the other Chunin Exam contestants winding through the crowd with ease.

Kushina sighed _"You really are a knucklehead you know"_ the violet eyed red haired woman deadpanned exasperated with her child for once, _"Perhaps during the month you have allotted to train you could help Naruto learn to detect genjutsu Sakura-chan"_ she pleaded with Sakura.

Who glanced towards her before blinking twice, which signaled that she was in agreement with the idea and that she would definitely help the boy learn the essentials "I don't get it though, how can you be so level headed all the time Sakura" the ebony haired preteen frowned.

Once they'd turned in their forms and were headed to the room the written part of the exam was supposed to be held in "Lots of practice Sasuke, plus my intelligence levels are high chunin, and girls mature faster than guys" the pinkette shrugged.

Naruto eyed his teammates warily "You two aren't gonna start an argument right now are you" the blonde inquired and to his relief both of them shook their heads, to do that now would make them waste precious time and that was something they had to avoid at all costs.

Hashirama sighed in relief like Naruto _"Good, also do you remember all those equations we practiced this is where they will truly come in handy, you won't even have to cheat in order to pass this exam"_ the brunette let a broad grin form on his lips.

As the lot of them turned the corner and at the very end of the hall in front of a set of doors stood their sensei "There you three are I was beginning to wonder if you would show up or not" Kakashi lowered his orange book focusing his attention on his cute little students.

When they came to a stop before him "Before you go in I would like to take a moment and say how proud I am of you three for coming this far and never backing down in your beliefs" the silver haired nin ruffled their hair gently.

Earning wide smiles from two of his little genin, while the other scoffed but was definitely pleased to hear praises coming from his sensei "We wouldn't have made it this far without you Kakashi-sensei Believe It" the Uzumaki on the team exclaimed in his usual exuberance.

"Precisely Tch can we go in now or what" the Uchiha huffed, not wanting to admit that he'd grown attached to his sensei or teammates, they'd grown on him like a fungus that he just couldn't cut off or get away from.

Sakura grinned from ear to ear "So sensei do you still hate us" the pink haired girl snickered and that lone onyx eye of his rolled upwards in exasperation, while his hand reached out to grasp the handle of the doors behind him.

"That's a secret, now do me even prouder all three of you better make it through this or I'll put you through training like you've never even considered" the Copy Ninja huffed himself pulling open the door and shutting it behind his students once they'd entered the exam room.

" _You're all really here now, good luck Sakura-chan, I'm gonna stick with Naruto-kun"_ the Uzumaki woman grew nervous once again and fidgeted uncomfortably feeling the stares herself and the chakra of many strong opponents.

Even Hashirama couldn't help but feel a little uncomfortable _"And I'll stay with Sakura-chan in case anything happens"_ the First Hokage coughed, onyx eyes scanning the room they were in and feeling as if things were going to get even worse before things had even begun.

All three members of Team Seven stuck quite close together and headed towards the far side of the room without so much as a peep from any of them, until they crowded together in a corner, to wary to even try to find the only person that considered them a friend at the moment.

"Do you get the feeling that we're being watched and also there's that chakra in the air, the one that's no good like a snakes" Sasuke shuddered sharing his concerns with his teammates, scanning the crowded room with cautious obsidian irises.

Next to him his only female teammate nodded "Yeah I don't like it either Sasuke that chakra is to strong to even be considered a genin's, maybe we should tell the proctor, what do you think" Sakura grimaced clutching onto the two boys hands to keep them from doing anything reckless.

"Maybe whoever it is won't bother with us cause we're genin and all so I don't think we have to worry Sakura-chan you know" Naruto flashed her a reassuring whiskered grin just as the rest of their classmates burst into the exam room with a loud ruckus.

Ino Yamanaka in the lead causing the tension to rise that she was completely oblivious to, unlike her teammates Shikamaru, who groaned and muttered under his breath probably saying something like troublesome woman, while Choji stood quietly next to his friend.

A few feet behind them were Team Eight, who simply hurried towards the members of Team Seven "W..Wh..What are you g..guys doing in the c..corner" Hinata stuttered quietly sticking rather close to her own teammates, feeling more nervous than ever.

Sakura winced feeling the heat of the glares herself and they weren't even being directed at her "Oh I get it, you're wary I feel it to that snake like chakra it's not right" Kiba nodded in understanding for once not being as loud or as boisterous as he was known for and Akamaru let out a quiet bark.

The last member of Team Eight was silent hazel eyes no doubt scanning the room before them behind his sunglasses "Are you prepared for the exams, why because they will no doubt be extremely challenging" Shino finally spoke.

"We're ready alright but if Yamanaka doesn't shut up she's gonna die before the written portion even begins" the raven haired boy on Team Seven scoffed in disgust, Ino was the worst and at the rate she was going was never going to amount to anything in the ninja world.

Unfortunately all five of his classmates turned fellow genin nodded in agreement "Even if she is an idiot we all have to have each others backs" the pinkette sighed, then reluctantly marched forward drawing every glaring eye onto herself.

The girl paused in her rant "What the hell do you think you're doing damn billboard brow, can't you see you're in the way of the spotlight, all eyes were on me until you came over here" Ino shrieked turning on Sakura in the next moment.

Only to get a glower of her own "Loud mouth much geez Ino, we are supposed to be shinobi not children" Choji shook his head covering his ears with a cringe at the loud sound that had come from his teammate.

While the remaining boy on Team Ten sighed "Troublesome you're such a drag Ino" Shikamaru groaned as he nudged his teammates forward after their former classmate turned fellow genin to where the others were stood crowded around.

"Got to go around making trouble for the rest of us don't you, you give kunoichi a bad name" the slightly younger brunette on Team Eight snorted harshly and Ino gave him a very hurt expression which was completely ignored.

That hurt expression developed into tears in the next moment "Yeah, any one of those guys could have killed you for what you were doing" even the knucklehead blonde on Team Seven understand what could have happened if she'd kept on.

Ino turned sharply to Sasuke "Their all being mean Sasuke-kun make them stop" the pupilless blue eyed blonde cried quite loudly which drew even more attention onto her and prompted a hand to be shoved over her mouth courtesy of one of her teammates.

"Kami Ino would you just shut up for once and stop crying about every little thing" the raven haired boy on Team Ten groaned quietly, beyond irritated at that point and realizing that the whole lot of them could be in trouble.

Especially when a chakra flared behind them and Sakura went completely rigid in between her own male teammates "Wh..What's the m..matter Sakura-chan" the blue haired lavender eyed girl frowned glancing over her shoulder and not spotting the reason for her friends rigidness.

"Did you guys feel that to" the reddish brown haired boy on Team Ten latched onto his friend eyeing the area behind them warily, he hadn't liked the feel of that chakra in the least and now it was headed straight for them.

Shino narrowed his hazel eyes behind his sunglasses as Sakura forced herself to stand in front of the lot of them "Can you feel it, it's like a snake" the older brunette on Team Eight commented as even his Kikaichu reacted in defense of the rotten chakra heading for them.

Until the boy, teenager with white/gray hair and onyx eyes behind glasses was in front of the nine of them "You guys really should learn not to make a commotion guess that's to be expected from a bunch of newbies after all" the gray haired teen shrugged as if he'd expected no less from them.

Emerald eyes narrowed in response "We don't need you to tell us that, so if you don't mind go back to where you came from because we don't need your help or appreciate you trying to intimidate us with your chakra" the pink haired kunoichi stated simply, hand on her hip.

" _Right on Sakura-chan you tell him who's boss"_ the Uzumaki woman made her appearance after being absent for the last several minutes like the other spirit that was attached to her, though he was still missing for the moment.

Onyx eyes blinked at her in surprise "I see, well if you would like some advice before the proctor gets here, I'll be over there" the teenager nodded pushing his glasses up his nose as they slid down before turning on his heel and heading back towards his own teammates.

The tension immediately faded in the room as everyone settled down "Why the hell did you tell him we didn't need help billboard brow" the Yamanaka Heiress growled under her breath finally relenting with her loudmouth tendencies.

Jade eyes flashed with anger and before the girl could snap "Because his chakra Yamanaka or are you more oblivious than the Dope, there was something off and it's best if we don't let him get to close to us" the Uchiha snorted harshly with a roll of his obsidian eyes.

Well at least he hoped the knucklehead wasn't more oblivious than Loudmouth Yamanaka as she was nicknamed back in the academy, his onyx eyes shifted in the blonde's direction and what he found was a relief.

"Yeah, his chakra was all wrong and nasty like" the Uzumaki boy nodded, not just saying what everyone else was saying but having felt that for himself thanks to his first friend who'd helped him determine friend from foe.

It was obvious the girl didn't like being ganged up on as she turned with a displeased huff and crossed her arms over her chest "Their right Ino and you know it" the Nara Heir said eyeing his sensitive teammate with an annoyed glance.

Off to the side his best friend nodded "Exactly and behaving like you have since we've become genin is not the way to go anymore" the Akimichi Heir exclaimed quietly happily munching on some chips he'd brought.

"When do you think the exam proctor is gonna get here" the Inuzuka Heir sighed becoming bored but he wasn't willing to cause a ruckus to satiate his boredom, not after that little confrontation, plus he didn't think his friend was handling this whole thing so well.

He chanced a glance in her direction and found her standing just as rigidly as before between her two teammates "P..Probably n..not much lo..longer Kiba-kun ri..right Shino-kun" the Hyuga Heiress fidgeted nervously.

Shino nodded quietly "Exactly, because the stated time limit is coming to an end" the Aburame Heir stated in his usual apathetic tone, hazel eyes roaming the room cautiously behind his sunglasses that way no one knew he was watching them.

Eight minutes later _"It's time Sakura-chan, the proctor will be here in less than two minutes"_ the First Hokage floated through the wall right beside her and it was quite a challenge not to jump in fright because she hadn't been expecting him to pop up so suddenly.

But like he'd warned their proctor appeared in a large plume of smoke "Pipe down and listen up you baby faced degenerates I'm Ibiki Morino and your worst nightmare from this moment on, line up now and get one of these slips with your seat number on it" Ibiki as he'd introduced himself barked.

And the genin went scrambling, after five minutes of this everyone was seated in a row with two others and papers that were their exams were passed around before Ibiki went about explaining the rules of the exam before having them begin.

One hour and at the fifty minute mark when there was only ten minutes left they would be given the last question, if they were caught cheating three times they were disqualified, it was once again tense in the exam room.

As the lot of them were allowed to flip over their test papers and start answering the questions 'Unbelievable so Hashirama-sama was right this is impossible and it basically encourages us to cheat' Sakura thought, gaze straying off to the side to where said spirit was situated.

He noticed her gaze and flashed her a reassuring smile _"You can do it Sakura-chan, Kushina and I have faith in you"_ Hashirama gave her two thumbs up as she put her pencil to the test paper and started writing the answers down one by one.

After each question, she would pause go over the equation once more then move onto the next one once she'd made sure she'd answered the question properly without a single error, while simultaneously scratching down answers on a separate sheet beneath the desk for Naruto.

Having learned long ago how to be ambidextrous in case something happened only on the demand of her two ghostly partners in crime, it was at the twenty minutes mark with only four questions left to answer that Sakura looked up.

Carefully at that and let her gaze roam around the room to scout out where her teammates were located, her eyes met the sharingan ones of Sasuke's just a few rows over from her and one row down, before they shifted elsewhere.

Then her jade eyes alighted on the form of her goofy knucklehead teammate several rows down in the same aisle she was in, she blew out a breath _"Just relax Sakura-chan you so have this down you know"_ Kushina popped up at her side suddenly.

Earning a very small smile from the girl her soul was attached to for whatever reason, not that she was complaining and it wasn't like she was incapable of protecting Sakura when it was needed, then the girl focused her attention on the exam once more.

Fifteen minutes later when there was only twenty minutes left to the written portion of the Chunin Exams, Sakura set down her pencils, checked over her answers one last time and with a hidden hand sign sent the second sheet of answers to Naruto.

Who surprisingly didn't so much as jump when something appeared in his hand via transportation seal, he didn't dare turn around to face the culprit as he lowered his baby blue eyes to the cheat sheet he'd been given 'Thanks Sakura-chan' Naruto inwardly thanked the girl.

And hurriedly started writing down the answers while acting as cool as he could and at the forty five minutes mark Naruto lowered his pencil, waded up the cheat sheet and shoved it into his pocket, with no one the wiser that he'd basically cheated.

He wasn't as stupid as some people let on, though he definitely wasn't good at exams, but he'd basically figured out that it would be impossible to answer the equations without cheating, though he didn't do sneaky, his teammates however did and that's what he'd been counting on.

Meanwhile the final member of their team had finished answering all the equations himself, having used his sharingan to acquire the answers he needed 'Now lets hope those two managed to do the same' Sasuke tapped his foot impatiently.

For another five minutes "Alright you brats it's time for the final question, you can choose to answer it, but I'll warn you if you answer incorrectly you'll end up stuck as a genin for the rest of your lives, if you want to leave now and try again in six months that's fine" the Head of T&I called out.

The genin lowered their pencils in response mulling their limited options over until Naruto that knuckle head stood and slammed his hand down on his desk "I don't quit and I don't run, I don't care if I'm a genin for the rest of my life I'll still be Hokage someday" the blonde shouted.

Sakura let a fond smile form on her lips _"Honestly that boy you know"_ his mother shook her head in exasperation but his words gave the rest of the genin in the exam room the courage to stay in their seats which earned them a pass from Ibiki.

Promptly a crazy looking purple haired soft brown eyed burst her way into the room through the window a stick of dango in her mouth "Alright you maggots follow me to the next portion of the exam, the survival round, my names Anko Mitarashi and I'm your proctor" Anko grinned.

A shudder crawled down the more sensitive genin's spines as Sasuke and Sakura joined their goofy teammate "You did good Naruto, you'll be Hokage in no time" the pinkette giggled lightly grasping his hand in her own.

While she did the same for Sasuke "But first we have to get past this exam remember" the raven haired preteen snorted a lot less harshly than he usually would because he couldn't actually believe they'd managed to make it through the written portion.

It wasn't more than fifteen minutes later that they were stood before a fenced off area "This here is the forest of death and the lot of you will be spending three days in there scrambling to collect both a heaven and an earth scroll" the purple haired special Jonin explained.

The point of the survival round was to make it to the center of the forest to the tower with two scrolls in which they were all made to since consent forms that basically said their proctor was not responsible for them should they die.

" _Don't worry Sakura-chan, you have the area memorized and the flares, just make sure you hand them out before you go in"_ the brunette manifested a little bit to rest his hands on Sakura's shoulders gently in hopes of boosting her confidence.

Especially in the next moment when Naruto mocked their proctor and Anko threw a kunai at him, which sliced his cheek, but it was the creepy woman from grass with a long tongue that set all members of Team Seven completely on edge.

Before they knew it they had their scroll a heaven one and were assigned a gate to stand before until it was time for the second round to begin "I got a bad feeling about this Sakura-chan" the Uzumaki on the team rubbed his arms wary of the forest before them.

Sakura nodded in understanding "Me to Naruto, that's why I brought flares if we get separated somehow or run into trouble we can't handle shoot one off and I'm sure someone will see them and come to help us" the twelve year old girl handed over two flares each to her teammates.

"Good thinking Sakura and I'm also assuming that you memorized the entire layout of this place beforehand" the Uchiha on the team raised an ebony brown earning a nod just as their gate gave an eerie creak then swung open as a buzzer sounded signaling they could now begin.

Emerald eyes narrowed in determination as she grabbed her teammates by the hands once more and the three of them shot forward _"No matter what happens Sakura-chan, remember we are on your side always"_ the Uzumaki woman floating along after her spoke.

" _Precisely and we'll do anything to protect the three of you from the untold dangers that are ahead of you in this place"_ the First Hokage nodded keeping his onyx eyes glued towards the distance as they dashed through the forest.

Avoiding all the area's where there were no security camera's and on a straight path to the tower in the center of the forest "Right I think given the amount of days we were told we had in here, we should head straight for the tower and wait for a team passing through and snag one of their scrolls" Sakura came up with a plan on the spot.

For her teammates she would do anything for them, her will of fire burned brighter than ever in that single moment especially when screams echoed all around them "Sounds l..like a good plan Sakura-chan" Naruto stuttered clutching her hand even tighter in fear.

"Yeah good one, so you weren't kidding about memorizing the layout of this place were you" Sasuke gazed ahead of them warily, he could feel the powerful chakra's all around him with his enhanced senses thanks to all those lessons he'd been given.

Now he wished he hadn't been given them because he couldn't turn them off for fear of being snuck up on and he refused to leave everything up to his female teammate, with that the lot of them fell quiet as they ran, turning this way and that.

Frustrating their pursuer not that they knew it because he couldn't do anything with all the bloody security camera's _"When you make up camp be sure to set many traps and choose a place that's less likely to be noticed by enemy nin"_ Kushina piped in suddenly.

And Sakura nearly tripped, but she managed to right herself at the last second by pushing off the tree branch a little harder than she intended _"It's probably best if we keep quiet for the time being Kushina-san"_ Hashirama soothed as the woman sported a guilty and apologetic look.

Their perception of time was completely messed up under the cover of all those tree's, so when their stomachs started rumbling in hunger Team Seven had no choice but to stop and take a fifteen minute break, munching on trail mix, berries and drinking water to fill their bellies before they were on the move again.

Hours passed once again "We have to stop, I think it's nighttime anyway, set up traps, use these chakra cloaking/genjutsu/barrier tags I brought along and we'll sleep huddled underneath that hollowed out tree" the pinkette pulled the lot of them to a stop.

In a small clearing that wasn't noticeable since it was so dark, the three of them set to work and after a cold dinner because they couldn't chance starting a fire to alert their enemies of their position, they went to bed "I'm cold" the blonde groaned quietly.

Not liking the second round of the Chunin Exams in the least "That makes two of us then, you'll get warm in a minute Dope" the raven haired boy on the team snorted quietly, onyx eyes scanning out of their little hiding spot.

Sakura sighed cracked her neck and shifted to get more comfortable, they were all squished together and soon enough all three of them fell asleep only to be woken up by a little bit of sunlight streaming through the leaves.

With a groan the members of Team Seven packed up camp, ate another cold breakfast it was all they could really afford to have given their situation _"Nothing happened during the night so I think you're in the clear"_ the violet eyed spirit informed having kept watch the entire night.

" _Though you did have a pursuer, he ran right by unaware that you three had stopped thanks to the chakra suppression tag that was good thinking"_ the brunette floating along after them flashed the girl his soul was attached to a double thumbs up.

Earning a very small smile as they hurried through the forest once again dodging any area's that had no security to make it to their destination, it was during lunch on their fifteen minute break that something had to freaking happen.

They were jumped by genin wearing Sound Village Headbands and a full blown fight broke out amongst the six of them but Team Seven won out in the end even if Sakura ended up sacrificing her long beautiful hair.

And they even got the earth scroll they needed "No more breaks, we have to get to that tower before the end of tomorrow" the pink haired twelve year old girl was more than a little upset at the loss of her hair even after trimming the ends to be neat.

It bugged her to no end at how short it now was "If it helps Sakura-chan I think the shorter length suits you" the Uzumaki said carefully knowing how short and volatile his female teammates temper currently was.

Her eyes softened in response "What the Dope said, now come on I refuse to fail at this bloody survival round" the Uchiha snorted, but once again it wasn't as harsh as it usually was and with that they were once again running through the Forest of Death.

They didn't even stop to sleep that night just kept running unwilling to give in because of how far they'd come _"Just a couple more miles Sakura-chan"_ the Uzumaki woman attached to her commented knowing the genin were all tired.

" _Then you'll be able to rest for the entire next day to regain your chakra and catch up on sleep and actually have a hot meal and a bed to sleep in"_ the First Hokage rattled off enticing the girl to go faster pushing her teammates and herself past their limits.

Until finally the lot of them skidded to a halt before the tower, they found the door with their number on it and entered the building, the trio letting out matching sighs of relief as the worst part of the second round was officially over.

Now they faced a new trial "What the heck is that all about" Naruto groaned loudly pointing to the chalkboard that had some kind of riddle on it, that he didn't understand in the least so he plopped down tiredly on the ground.

His two teammates wanted to do the same but approached the chalkboard to read the riddle "If qualities of heaven are your desire acquire wisdom and knowledge to make your mind higher, If earthly qualities are what you lack train your body in the fields and prepare to attack" Sasuke read off first.

"When both heaven and earth are opened together the path of peril will revert to the righteous path forever, this something is the secret way that guides us on from this place today, I think it's saying we should open the scrolls together" Sakura finished and offered a solution in the next moment.

Causing both of her teammates to look at her _"Just as you'd expect from someone who has the intelligence levels of a high chunin Believe It"_ Kushina grinned from ear to ear speaking in a smug/proud tone of voice.

She and her ghostly partner in crime had definitely trained Sakura right _"Indeed and after this you can finally rest until the last day of the second round comes to an end"_ Hashirama assured glad that not to much had happened.

As the three members of Team Seven unrolled both their heaven and earth scroll completing the summoning jutsu formula inscribed on both scrolls and in a large plume of smoke their old academy sensei was stood before them singing their praises.

Before they were finally, finally allowed to enter through a side door eat a late dinner/breakfast whatever one would call it before crawling in to bed in an assigned room to get some shut eye for the next day which was sure to be interesting no doubt.

The next morning after waking up and heading to the cafeteria, Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura saw who else had made it to the Tower in the center of the Forest of Death already, Team Eight and the Sand Siblings, which was a welcome relief to Sakura.

But they spent the day lounging about the tower hanging out with the few friends there before the other teams started trickling in throughout the day until the second round came to an end and they were told a preliminary round would begin.

"Joy rapture" the pinkette rubbed her temples knowing that it was going to be a trying few hours as they all headed up to the balcony to wait for the electronic board to pick two genin to fight against each other to find how who would be in the final round.

Surprise, surprise Sasuke and a teenager that had been Kabuto's team as they'd learned his name was were picked to fight in the first preliminary round "Good luck Teme and don't lose to the freak" the blonde on his team cheered.

Which promoted Sasuke to roll his eyes "Don't need it but thanks anyway" the raven haired boy deadpanned as he leaped the railing and landed smoothly on his feet before walking the rest of the way to the center of the arena.

To face his opponent, "Let the first round of the preliminaries begin" Hayate Gekko their proctor for this round announced and the two genin leaped at each other, the fight was normal for the most part until Sasuke launched a flurry of kicks and punches at his opponent.

Using plain old taijutsu to win his match "Way to go Sasuke-kun you're the best and definitely better than that ugly billboard brow on your team" Ino cheered loudly making her teammates and sensei roll their eyes in response.

Sasuke ignored the statement as he walked calmly up the stairs to reach the balcony and his team once again, and found his sensei there along with two extra's "You're Hokage allowed us to come here" Zabuza explained not wanting to miss out on the fights.

"Exactly so we'll be rooting you two on when you are chosen for one of the fights" Haku smiled eyeing the electronic board as two more names were called, Shino vs one of the Sound Genin, Zaku Abumi, who still looked extremely beat up from the other day.

It was as the fight started between the two boys that Zabuza, the Leaf Jonin in charge of Team Seven and Haku noticed the difference in the sole girl "What happened to you're hair Sakura-chan" Kakashi eyed the shoulder length hair warily.

Her hands clenched into fists "Well those damn Sound genin jumped us the other day and the girl grabbed my hair, had to slice through it get free otherwise we would have all ended up dead by their hands, they were after Sasuke for some reason or another" she explained.

Reaching up to finger a shortened lock of her pink hair, emerald eyes intense as the match below was called and Shino was named winner, Zaku was taken away on a stretcher by medics _"When do you think it'll be you're turn Sakura-chan"_ the violet eyed woman inquired.

Looking bored at that current moment in time as the electronic board started sorting through the remaining genin who had yet to fight already two contestants for the final round had been decided on and there were still many genin who were stood on the balcony.

" _No need to rush Kushina, and remember during you're fight Sakura-chan conserve as much chakra as you can"_ the brunette stated wisely getting the feeling that her medical skills would come in handy as the next round contestants were chosen.

Naruto vs Kiba, Kakashi sighed "Good luck anyway Naruto, who knows perhaps in the month we didn't train with Team Eight he learned some new skills and it will be a surprise" the silver haired nin patted the youngest member of his team on the back as he jumped the railing.

Copying Sasuke, who rolled his eyes in response, before both preteens were stood in the center of the arena ready to fight it out "There's no way I'm gonna lose to you Uzumaki" Kiba boasted certain of his win.

Sakura slapped her forehead, that was one thing that never changed about Kiba, he was cocky to a fault "Yeah we'll just see about that won't we Dog boy" Naruto huffed angrily as the proctor signaled for them to start.

Above on the balcony his sole female teammate sighed and shook her head "I take it that's the norm for them" the raven haired fifteen year old behind her questioned gently watching the match with dark brown eyes.

That had gone for a near fifteen minutes now because of how stubborn the two boys were, Sakura nodded "Who do you think will win anyway between the two of them" the raven haired rogue prodded already thinking the two boys were evenly matched.

"Naruto of course, I have faith in that knucklehead, plus he manages to pull of impossible wins sometimes" her lips curved upwards into a fond smile seeing the plan that her knucklehead teammate had come up with.

Before the unexpected happened, Naruto farted right in Kiba's face, knocking the nose sensitive boy out thus winning the match "Ew that baka sure knows how to be unpredictable" the Uchiha on the team shook his head.

Even the two spirits attached to the pink haired genin were a little bit disgusted _"He's my son alright only that would happen to him you know"_ the Uzumaki woman shook her head not able to comprehend the scene that she'd just seen.

Hashirama nodded _"Indeed, though that doesn't necessarily mean something bad, he'll become such a fine shinobi in the future with Sakura-chan leading him along the right path"_ the First Hokage commented wisely as Naruto joined his teammates, sensei and extra's on the balcony again.

Followed by the next match, Shikamaru vs Kin Tsuchi from Sound, Temari vs Tenten and Kankuro vs the last teammate of Kabuto's before finally they were allowed a fifteen minute break as two more final round contestants were chosen, Shikamaru, Temari and Kankuro.

There were very few genin remaining at that point, Sakura took a chance to go to the bathroom and on the way out she rammed into Ino, "Get ready to go down forehead, I can feel you're match will be next" the blonde boasted.

Entering the bathroom as she returned to her sensei's side eight minutes later the electronic board started up again "Looks like it's you're turn Sakura-chan" the Copy Ninja murmured, lone onyx eye shifting in the other kunoichi's direction that had been chosen.

Who was shell shocked to learn who her opponent was "I'm not gonna lose to you billboard brow" the Yamanaka Heiress shrieked as they headed down to the arena and stood opposite each other, the only pink haired girl there was silent.

Jade eyes flashing with determination "Let the round begin" Hayate signaled for the two kunoichi to start their fight, Ino was the first one to make a move as she threw multiple weapons at the girl stood across from her.

"That's not going to work Ino and you know it, you have to fight me seriously if you want to win" Sakura stated settling in a defensive crouch, already knowing how she was going to win and baiting her opponent into making a mistake.

Pupilless blue eyes narrowed and flashed with anger "Urgh you are so annoying, that settles it I'm gonna beat you and prove to Sasuke-kun that I'm the better kunoichi and that you don't deserve to be anything to him" Ino snarled.

Darting forward and swung her fist out in hopes of punching Sakura, who deflected the frontal attack with ease and thrust her tantou out, Ino leaped back hastily not realizing it at that moment just yet but she'd just had some of her chakra stolen.

On the tantou was a tag and on the tag was written a formula, it was a chakra sealing tag made especially for that fight "You're gonna have to do more than try to punch me Ino" the pinkette mocked knowing it would infuriate Ino even more.

Who once again charged forward recklessly anger ignited within her pupilless blue eyes "I'll do more than that billboard brow and you're gonna go down once and for all, you don't deserve to be on Sasuke-kun's team and I'm gonna prove it" the blonde snapped.

Throwing a flurry of punches and kicks all of which were deflected, followed by more of her chakra being swiped and sealed before she was kicked flat on her back only to skid painfully across the floor.

"Aww is loud mouth Yamanaka tired already, guess you should have been training instead of focusing on you're looks and cloths" the pink haired kunoichi taunted riling the girl up even further in hopes to end the fight.

Ino rose slowly to her feet already out of breath and Sakura stood in the same position as when they'd started "Y..You a..are not going to beat me fo..forehead girl" the Yamanaka Heiress breathed heavily enraged beyond what she thought possible.

As she brought a kunai out of her holster and sliced clean through her hair, to which she promptly threw down, viridian orbs narrowed and she could hazard a guess as to what her opponent was planning the next few moments would prove to be interesting though.

"That won't work against me Ino, you're clan jutsu the Mind Transfer Jutsu which allows you to transfer you're spirit and take control of another persons body, if you miss it will take minutes before you're spirit returns to you're body and I could kill you in those minutes" Sakura warned.

Purposefully mocking the girl into using her clan jutsu "You don't have the heart to kill billboard brow not like me who's killed tons of people" Ino stuck her tongue out childishly lying through her teeth and even Asuma covered his eyes.

Sakura clicked her tongue in disappointment "Do you know what happens when you lie Ino, karma" the pinkette shook her head peridot orbs focused on the floor watching the strands of blond hair that littered the floor closely.

And just as a stream of blue chakra flowed in her chakra, she leaped to the side "Mind Transfer Jutsu" the blonde called out at the wrong moment and her body slumped to the floor, Sakura felt something fly by her.

"Poor Ino you just don't know when to listen do you" the twelve year old girl sighed walking forward calmly and after producing a roll of rope from her pouch tied Ino's hands behind her back, before placing a kunai to the girls neck.

Waiting rather patiently for the girls spirit to return "Bu..But how did you I could have sworn" the Yamanaka Heiress was confused, how could she have lost her plan had been perfect use her hair as a conduit for her chakra and win, it just wasn't fair.

Her opponent pressed her lips together "Concede defeat Ino or I'll be forced to make a decision that would end with you're life lost, I'm not afraid to kill, I have killed, question is do you wish to be my second kill" Sakura murmured darkly in the girls ear leaking her KI into the air purposefully.

Causing the blonde to shake in fear and terror "I forfeit, I forfeit" Ino yelled hurriedly at the proctor, Sakura was named winner of their match and they hurried back up to the balcony on opposite sides.

With that came the next match, it was the one she'd been waiting for and why she hadn't used any of her chakra in the fight at all and it ended just as how she'd expected, Sakura leaped down at the last moment and caught Neji's wrist before he could kill her friend.

"Let it go Neji, I wouldn't allow you to kill her" the pink haired kunoichi warned catching the unconscious girl with her other arm and holding her up with chakra enhanced strength, blood trickling from Hinata's mouth.

The Hyuga glared "Whatever she's not worth it anyway, it would just be a waste of my time to kill her" Neji snorted, turned on his heel and headed back up to the balcony just as the medics came with a stretcher to carry Hinata away.

Sakura on their heels to heal her friend before returning to the arena just in time to see Gaara beat his opponent Rock Lee, who was dealt minor injuries due to the sand that Gaara used and had to be taken away on a stretcher as well.

Followed by the match between the last two genin, Choji and Dosu Kinuta, Dosu won their fight and all contestants for the Final Round had been chosen "Congratulations on the lot of you for making it this far, we will now decide on who you're opponents will be" Hiruzen spoke.

Having been watching that entire time and was proud of how strong the new generation of shinobi were already, and the matches were decided in this order, Neji vs Naruto, Shino vs Kankuro, Shikamaru vs Temari, Dosu vs Sakura, Sasuke vs Gaara.

Then they were finally transported from the Forest of Death, their sensei's congratulated them and they were allowed to go home "Ugh I'm ready to sleep for the rest of the day" Sakura groaned feeling exhausted glad that she was almost there.

It was as she was reaching for the door that it flew open and cracked into her head "Oops I'm sorry Sakura-chan hey you're back" Karin hugged her friend healing the bruise with regular medical chakra before dragging the pink haired girl in to the house.

Where she was congratulated for passing the first two rounds and the preliminary rounds making it all the way to the final round of the Chunin Exams, ate supper, took a nice relaxing shower before crawling into her bed.

" _Good job Sakura-chan we're proud of you for doing so well and for protecting you're teammates no matter what came you're way"_ Kushina murmured quietly knowing that Sakura was already knocked out sleeping the rest of the day away.

" _Indeed and tomorrow will begin you're month long training in order to improve to beat you're opponent during the final round"_ Hashirama stated knowing he would have to repeat that since Sakura wasn't listening in the least, hours later the Haruno house quieted down for the night to get some shut eye themselves after a few tense days.


	11. Chunin Exams Training Period

During the next couple of days instead of training like she was supposed to in order to prepare herself for her match during the final round of the Chunin Exams, the pink haired kunoichi went around trying to come up with a solid plan in order to defeat her opponent.

Needless to say she was stumped how did one defend against invisible attacks that _"You'll think of something Sakura-chan don't strain yourself okay"_ Kushina was just as stumped as the girl her soul was attached to.

So her words did little to help _"Perhaps you could go ask that sensei of yours if you can find him"_ Hashirama offered in hopes to help her in some way because he couldn't think of anything either and his seemingly infinite knowledge was failing him at that moment.

The girl sighed in response "That's kind of impossible, Kakashi-sensei took Sasuke off to train and nobody can find them" Sakura rubbed her forehead and healed it as a headache pounded through her skull as she wandered the streets.

Before ramming right into the Third Hokage's younger son "Haruno-san what are you doing out and about thought you would be off training since you're so training oriented" Asuma lifted an ebony brow staring down at the young girl.

"I have trained a little bit Asuma-sensei but for the moment I'm trying to come up with a good plan to beat Dosu, though how does one fight sound or defend against it and it's leaving me a little puzzled" the pinkette couldn't help but ramble.

Asuma stared down at her in surprise as the other brow raised high into his hairline to join the first one "Why not use wind, any time he uses his jutsu counter it with a wind jutsu" the raven haired Jonin offered.

Sakura blinked, considered the idea "Oh but I don't have wind nature and I wouldn't have a clue on how to even train to learn a new nature" she sighed rubbing her forehead again, guess it was time to hit the library again.

Or not as Asuma made her an offer "Since Shikamaru is being trained by Shikaku, and because you were actually kind to Ino by not boasting you're win, how about a deal Haruno-san, you buy lunch every day for the rest of this month for me and I'll teach you how to wield wind nature chakra" the brown eyed man suggested.

" _Take it Sakura-chan otherwise it would take to long to learn and you wouldn't be ready in time for the final round"_ the violet eyed red haired woman who was a ghost jumped in knowing how good Asuma was with his wind nature chakra.

Hashirama nodded in agreement _"Correct besides even if Kushina does have Wind Nature Chakra herself, she wouldn't be able to instruct you properly"_ the brunette explained and Kushina couldn't help but agree with the statement herself.

Fuinjutsu was more her forte really "Deal Asuma-sensei, lunch everyday for the rest of this month will be easy" Sakura nodded jade eyes flashing with renewed determination as all the possible idea's to her future fight popped into her head.

One side of his mouth quirked upwards "Good, let's go to the training grounds then and get started on you're wind nature training" Asuma ordered in a tone that brooked no judgment or arguments from the girl really as he nudged her towards his usual training grounds.

" _Just so you know Sakura-chan this training is going to be like nothing you could have ever imagined"_ the Uzumaki woman warned not wanting the girl to go into this training without some semblance of an idea of what she was getting into.

She swallowed carefully _"I'm afraid Kushina-san is right Sakura-chan and you might want to think up other ways to defeat you're opponent if you can't get this training down before the end of the month"_ the First Hokage stated with a wince.

Now she was even more determined to complete this training "Ready whenever you are Asuma-sensei and I swear that I'll have Wind Nature chakra mastered before the final rounds even come around" the pink haired kunoichi vowed.

Her unlikely trainer chuckled and lit up a cigarette "Okay first is learning how to wield wind nature chakra, what you gotta do kid is cut this leaf in half, suppress you're other chakra natures and control the wind with you're chakra, take it in to yourself" the Third Hokage's son instructed.

Already confusing the poor girl he'd offered to teach, but she took the held out leaf and placed it in the palm of her hand, going over the instructions inwardly before trying her hand as she brought her other hand to rest over the leaf.

Then and concentrating as hard as she could suppressed her other natures as she tried to control the wind, it was a difficult task for a genin to learn a new chakra nature she realized in the next moment as nothing happened after five minutes of focusing all of her intent and desire on her task.

But she didn't let that frustrate her, she knew it would be difficult and possibly frustrating, time consuming as well and tried yet again, brown eyes watching her from a short distance away for two hours they stood there on the training grounds.

Until she felt something tear in the palm of her hand, she ripped her left hand away to stare at the leaf resting in her right hand palm and spotted the tiny tear "Hahaha and that's only the beginning" Sakura cheered triumphantly.

Only to sway before falling unconscious "You still have a long ways to go kid" Asuma chuckled putting out his cigarette and catching the girl before she could fall flat on her face, though he was definitely surprised at how quickly she'd managed one tiny little tear.

"What happened to the brat" Zabuza Momochi was suddenly pacing along at his side, eyeing the knocked out girl in veiled concern, he didn't want to admit it, but he'd grown attached to the brats of Team Seven, though once the Chunin Exams were over it would be back to the Land of Waves.

Asuma turned his head in Zabuza's direction "Exerted herself a little to much during training, I offered to teach her how to wield a new chakra nature" the sensei of Team Ten shrugged gesturing to the girl and she was quickly taken.

"I've got her" the raven haired rogue found it easy to carry the brat, she was light, which was perfect because of how good her, Asuma waved sure Sakura would be at the training grounds the next day to practice more and headed off.

Guess he would just have to wait until tomorrow to get his free meal, Zabuza shook his head and took Sakura home and a couple hours later she was awake and raring to go which meant even more training as she tried to come up with other idea's to help her beat Dosu.

The next morning with a basket for lunch in hands Sakura waved to her parents "Good luck on you're training Sakura-chan" Karin called sporting her own Leaf Village headband on her forehead, though she was without a team at the moment, that would come later.

For now she was just happy to be apart of the village she'd fallen in love with as her best friend headed out the door for training "Good Morning Asuma-sensei" the pinkette skidded to a halt on the new training grounds.

"Morning Haruno-san early riser I see well at least you're eager to train" the raven haired Leaf Jonin jumped down from the tree he had been lounging in for the last twenty minutes, cigarette in his mouth and smoke swirling lazily in the air as he exhaled.

She nodded "And I even brought lunch, this time I don't intend on passing out after just two hours, no matter what it takes, no matter what I have to go through, I will win" the twelve year old kunoichi genin vowed yet again.

"Confident huh kid how about another bet then, if you're still willing to go through this training at the end of this week which is in four days I'll buy lunch and every time you progress on you're training I'll buy lunch how does that sound" the brown eyed Jonin offered.

Wanting to see how far the girl would go for their bets, her eyes flashed "You have a deal again Asuma-sensei, you'll find I don't give up easily and I hate to lose at bets" she stated with a grin setting down the basket with their lunch inside.

Picked up a leaf and began her new training _"I'm going to go check on Naruto-kun, see how he's fairing on his training with Jiraiya"_ Kushina exclaimed not wanting to stand there and watch the girl her soul was attached to for hours on end stand in one position to wield wind nature.

And hastily disappeared to wherever her son was located and his godfather _"Err you think I'll go see how Sasuke and Kakashi are coming along"_ Hashirama vanished in the next moment knowing how determined the pink haired kunoichi was when it came to new things.

The will to finish what she started was instilled within her "So the conversation you had with Ino during you're match kind of peaked my interest, have you really killed" Asuma struck up a conversation an hour later.

With no results yet proving how difficult this training actually was for the young girl "I have and I'd do it again for any one of my friends or teammates" Sakura paused for just a moment to answer, then focused her attention on trying to control the wind to cut the leaf.

Forty minutes later a little tear appeared in the leaf, less time than the day before, but the same size as the first cut it made her even more determined "Why, who was it that you killed" the Jonin prodded curiously.

Sakura lowered her hand with the leaf clasped within "Grass Ninja and because he came after Karin, they tortured her you know, though I'm definitely gonna be more wary in the future, cause their insane and put exploding tags in their bodies that go off at the moment they die" the pinkette grimaced.

"The body exploded on you bet that wasn't fun what with all the blood and body parts that most likely got on you" the Third Hokage's son guessed easily trying to get a rise out of the girl, who was no doubt extremely skittish when blood was involved.

But to his surprise her brows raised "No not really, but then again it wasn't my first time being covered in blood from head to toe or have an exploding tag go off in my face" the twelve year old girl shrugged, definitely not a normal response.

And the Jonin fell silent allowing her to practice for another two hours, which progressed into a longer tear in the leaf before they sat down to have the homemade lunch "So this is where you were Asuma" Kurenai appeared suddenly just as he went to take a bite of his sandwich.

"Kurenai what brings you here and yeah offered to teach Haruno-san how to wield wind nature chakra, so this will be my normal spot for the next month" Asuma took a bite before speaking, eyeing the woman up and down.

The young girl immediately picked up on the interest in his brown eyes but didn't comment on the apparent attraction the two Jonin held for each other "Because wind could redirect Dosu's attacks of sound onto himself if timed just right" Sakura explained when red eyes settled on her.

Different than Karin's and definitely beautiful in their own right "Would you mind if I join you for the training then, I have no doubt you'll be able to master it in the end" the beautiful raven haired red eyed woman inquired.

Emerald eyes lit up and even Asuma was shocked "So you think she can manage to learn a new nature before the end of this month to" the raven haired man asked lowering his sandwich once again in confusion.

The woman nodded in response "Our teams use to have regular training sessions so Kurenai-sensei would know just how hard I work to learn something new such as a water jutsu and I don't mind at all if you join us, what about you Asuma-sensei" the pinkette smiled.

Just a bit to cheekily and Asuma's brown eyes rolled upwards in mild annoyance followed by a quiet snort and he shook his head indicating he didn't mind so the woman sat, was given a canteen of tea and a sandwich and the three of them ate.

Before it was time for more training "How long has she been at this training already Asuma" Kurenai watched the young girl who grew more and more determined as the time wore on, she definitely was an interesting child.

Who according to Shikaku had the intelligence levels of a high chunin "Late afternoon yesterday and all of this morning from 7:50 to now" Asuma said keeping his gaze on the girl he'd offered to train, there was no denying it, she was a harder worker.

That was making him believe even that it was just possible for her to learn a new chakra nature in just one months time, even less considering she'd started three days after the initial starting period for the time allotted to the final round contestants to train.

Her jade eyes were narrowed in determination and her face was the picture of absolute concentration as she worked on her task for two hours more after lunch before deciding to call it quits for the day "Think I'm gonna go home and think battle strategy" Sakura announced.

Letting the leaf, which definitely had a much larger tear in it now than earlier, drift to the ground earning waves from the duo before speeding off with a lot more energy than she currently felt she had and all the way back home.

"Oh there you are Sakura, I was just looking for you" Haku was there sitting in the living room with Karin, both of them were playing a game of Go and it was obvious Karin was losing badly, but was having to much fun to really care.

Sakura let a smile form on her lips as her two ghostly partners in crime reappeared "Uh-huh looks like you've been at it for awhile, anyway I'm probably gonna be busy most of the time during this month training" the pinkette explained.

Haku tilted his head to the side "Right because you're learning a new chakra nature, wind, Zabuza-sama told me" the raven haired teenager nodded in understanding, he was just glad to even see her at all considering her usual rather harsh training regimen.

"Aww looks like you win again Haku-kun" Karin pouted as she once again lost to the boy at her side "Want to go another round, this time I'll be able to put up an even harder challenge" the red haired ruby eyed girl offered with a grin.

The board was set to rights and Sakura smiled in amusement bypassing the couch and headed into her room to pick out a clean outfit to wear, then vanished into her bathroom for fifteen minutes, when she emerged from her room, Karin was smiling triumphantly.

Obviously having won and Haku was acting like he was sulking but Sakura saw the ruse for what it was, he'd intentionally let Karin win so she wouldn't feel bad for sucking so horribly at the game "Ugh that new training is pretty difficult" the pink haired girl flopped down.

"I can imagine Sakura, not only that but Naruto and Sasuke have vanished alongside Kakashi, so Zabuza-sama is scowling even more these days" the fifteen year old shifted his dark brown eyes onto the girl on the couch opposite them.

Karin frowned lightly "Just what exactly is it like learning a new chakra nature anyway Sakura-chan" the Uzumaki girl prodded wanting to know, because she hadn't even considered learning what her own chakra natures were at that current moment in time.

Unseen to two of them _"Better indulge her Sakura-chan, ooh maybe when you find the time you could help Karin-chan find out what her own chakra natures are"_ the Uzumaki woman suggested, knowing it would be difficult.

" _Which would be difficult considering how much concentration it takes to even make a tear in the leaf, perhaps once Sakura-chan has gotten the basics down"_ the First Hokage was quick to make a different suggestion that was the same, but different.

To which the girl their souls were attached to sat up "Pretty hard, I have to suppress my other chakra natures while controlling the wind, by the way once I get the basics down how would you like to learn what you're own chakra natures are Karin-chan" Sakura offered.

Ruby eyes lit up in excitement "Good idea perhaps Zabuza-sama and I could even join you once that happens" Haku threw in a second later before the girl could respond, knowing it would help having more than one person instructing her.

"Love to Sakura-chan, ooh I wonder what I have, maybe lightning nature or water that's always a good one, perhaps wind, I don't think I'd have fire, but earth would be nice to have as well" Karin chattered a mile a minute pondering over which nature she would have.

Making her friends share an amused smile at her antics before Haku decided it was time to head off and leave the two girls to themselves "Oh by the way Sakura-chan you're parents are gone on some kind of trip" the red haired ruby eyed girl said suddenly once the door shut.

Sakura blinked "No surprise there, it is that time they go out to sell their wares after all, their merchants you see and travel around selling things" the pinkette nodded explaining to her friend what exactly her parents did.

The two of them lounged about the living room for a few more hours until it was time for dinner in which they ate a quiet supper by themselves, before cleaning up and crawling into the to large bed Sakura had.

Four days later signaled the end of the first week of her wind nature training and each day her training had progressed little by little "Guess what Asuma-sensei, looks like you'll be paying for lunch today" Sakura grinned from ear to ear.

And the older woman who was now a constant on the training field most often used by Team Ten snickered at her secret lover "She's right Asuma, that was you're bet after all" Kurenai said words dripping with pure amusement.

He let out a long suffering sigh "True, alright, alright no need to badger me about it, I know when I'm beaten" Asuma eyed his wallet with a pitiful expression obviously thinking that the two females were going to blow through his entire mission paycheck.

But to his absolute surprise when lunch time rolled around they visited the tea shop and ordered a light meal that was the cheapest thing on the menu "Nothing like Choji, Asuma-sensei, besides if I overexert myself again I don't want to end up puking" the pink haired girl pointed out.

Earning a nod from her fellow kunoichi "Tell me Sakura-san have you taken an interest in any boy yet" the beautiful raven haired woman inquired partway through lunch and Asuma choked on his tea because that was definitely not a conversation he wanted to be present for.

Though he had little choice "Go on just get it over with quickly" the raven haired Jonin grimaced thinking that the girl was going to go on and on about Sasuke Uchiha like his own female student constantly did.

"Not exactly Kurenai-sensei though that's not to say I don't have experience" Sakura admitted, cheeks tinged pink with a blush as she remembered her six kisses from three different boys, which made her cheeks grow hotter and the blush to deepen a darker red color.

Just by thinking about it "Oh really must have been some kiss huh Sakura-san if it can make you blush that bad will you tell me who it was, was it your teammate Sasuke-san" Kurenai prodded lightly wanting to get the girl to talk.

While her own lover groaned "Do you really have to have this conversation in front of me" Asuma sulked resigning himself to hearing about Sasuke Uchiha after all because all girls were absolutely smitten with one of the last remaining Uchiha.

Sakura grimaced "Uh-huh Sasuke's like a brother to me, but the kiss that makes me blush all the way to my roots is the one Haku gave me back in the Land of Waves when we were coming home last month" the young girl did exactly as she'd said and blushed from the tips of her toes to the roots of her hair.

A dark red color that darkened by the second as she remembered that kiss "Wait a second you're not in love with Sasuke like Ino" the Third Hokage's son gaped in surprise which gave Sakura the moment she needed to will her blush away as she shook her head in response to the question.

" _Of course Sakura-chan's not in love with that Sasuke-chan, he's not good enough for my Sakura-chan you know"_ the violet eyed woman popped up out of nowhere startling the girl her soul was attached to.

It was hard not jumping a foot in the air but she reigned in her surprise _"We must really learn not to do that Kushina, or people will begin to get suspicious about Sakura-chan, we've already drawn to much attention to her"_ the brunette warned wisely.

"Just why not Sakura-san most girls you're age are into guys with pretty faces" the raven haired woman with gorgeous red eyes inquired gently neither Jonin noticing the sudden movement the girl made as she was startled by some unseen force.

But she answered the question dutifully "I've been training oriented for as long as I could remember and didn't really focus on guys and by the time I was old enough to take notice, Sasuke just didn't attract my attention that's all" Sakura said lightly.

Polishing off her salad and one stick of dango, followed by draining the rest of her tea "Okay Haruno-san back to training, more progress has to be made before I buy lunch again" Asuma huffed and the two females dissolved into giggles.

As the three of them trekked back to the training grounds "Looks like troubles headed you're way Asuma" Kurenai warned spotting the dust cloud speeding in their direction, before skidding to a halt just as they stepped foot on the training grounds.

The sole female member of Team Ten "What the hell are you doing on Team Ten's training grounds billboard brow, first you steal Sasuke-kun, now you're trying to take my training grounds to and what are you doing with my sensei" Ino growled angrily.

Seeing the girl who'd beaten her hands down during their preliminary match _"That girl is an even bigger loudmouth than Naruto-kun believe it"_ Kushina sighed looking quite irritated with the young girl from the Yamanaka Clan.

Next to her, her ghostly partner in crime was shaking his head _"Would it kill the girl to look past her idiotic and loudmouth tendencies and actually train seriously for once"_ Hashirama had no sympathy for Ino on that day.

Especially when Sakura put a hand on her hip and cocked a brow at the blonde, who reeled back "For you're question Ino, Asuma-sensei offered to train me on how to use a new chakra nature, that is all" the pinkette stated bluntly.

Ino blinked in shock and surprise before shifting her pupilless blue eyes onto her sensei, who nodded "She's right Ino, Haruno-san didn't ask, I offered" the brown eyed male said as gently as possible to his sensitive student.

Who looked as if she was about to burst into tears at any moment "There's no use complaining Ino-san considering Sakura-san is in the final round of the chunin exams" the raven haired woman with beautiful red eyes explained.

"B..But that's not fair, I should be the one in the final rounds not you billboard brow, why is it always you, everything's been about you since we started the academy" the blonde finally did as they thought, burst into tears, shrieked and ran away.

Sakura let out a long suffering sigh and healed the headache that came on suddenly feeling tired all of a sudden "Right training" the young kunoichi muttered not able to muster up her usual enthusiasm about training and got to work.

Asuma frowned "Are you alright Haruno-san, you look a little pale" the raven haired Jonin commented noticing the whiteness of the girls skin, who was definitely looking a little green around the gills at the moment.

Kurenai reached forward "By the kami you have a fever, why didn't you say something sooner" the older Kunoichi scolded harshly as the girl sunk to the ground on her knee's and held her head as it throbbed.

" _Poor Sakura-chan, you've been doing an awful lot the last several days"_ the Uzumaki woman attached to her frowned deeply wishing she could do something to help the girl relax so that she could rest properly instead of having to do everything.

In order to make sure everything was neat and proper when her parents returned from their trip which still wouldn't be for a week and two days _"Maybe you should call it quits on training for the rest of the day"_ the First Hokage suggested.

"My parents are gone on their usual trip, probably overworked myself, didn't realize I had a fever" Sakura admitted quietly to the Jonin resting her head on her knee's and looking as if she was about to crash into a most needed sleep.

The duo before her shook their heads in amusement "Go on home then Haruno-san, you've done enough training for the day and you're coming along nicely, taking a break is also essential, let someone else handle the responsibilities" Asuma waved her off.

Sakura rose to her feet carefully stumbled once, then carried on her way with her head raised high "Such a confident girl, she really is gonna make it far in this world despite the odds stacked against her" Kurenai smiled as they two headed off to places unknown.

While Sakura hurried home, the house was empty so she didn't feel guilty in the least she she took off her sandals and headed into the kitchen made some tea out of her fever reducing herbs, drank it then vanished down the halls to her bedroom to get some much needed shut eye.

"Brat how the hell did you manage to get a fever doing hardly anything" Zabuza shook her awake hours later after dinner had long since passed, on her bedside table was a takeout box with ramen from Ichiraku that he thrust into her hands carefully.

Obviously having heard from Asuma or Kurenai about her fever "Not hardly anything, I've been training, keeping this house clean, cooking breakfast, lunch sometimes and dinner" the pinkette stated in a simple tone to tired to make to much of a fuss at that current moment.

Zabuza snorted harshly with a roll of his eyes "Yeah, yeah brat just eat then go back to bed, little red is staying with blondie" the raven haired rogue, who was still in fact a rogue, but couldn't be harmed because he had immunity from his country, ordered in a rough tone of voice.

She didn't argue and quickly ate her two bowls of chicken ramen and downed the glass of water before scooting down beneath the blankets of her to large bed and drifting off into another peaceful sleep that definitely went a long way to helping her get over her fever.

Less than five days later Sakura completed the initial training to learn how to wield a new chakra nature by cutting the entire leaf in half "Well done Haruno-san, looks like lunch is on me tomorrow again huh" the raven haired male shook his head.

Now realizing what made the girl so special that she could get even Kakashi to pay attention to her, it had to have been her that had gotten the man to accept her teammates and herself as his students, there was just no other explanation.

"Indeed and no doubt for the last two weeks you'll be learning a few wind jutsu, which means that you'll be able to spend more time with you're friends" the older Kunoichi announced pleased that the girl had managed to complete the first part of her new nature training.

Her emerald eyes lit up in excitement _"You did it Sakura-chan, Karin-chan will be so excited to finally learn what her chakra nature is"_ the violet eyed red haired woman that was stuck to her for some reason cheered.

While Hashirama nodded _"Exactly perhaps you could even check up on…ooh but that wouldn't be a good idea"_ the brunette trailed off earning an imperceptible look, but she didn't demand anymore information from him.

As she righted herself looking more determined than ever as the three of them split up for the day to do their own thing until night fell over the village, dinner was made, showers were taken and finally crawled into her bed to get some sleep.

The next morning during breakfast "So once I learn I memorize the hand signs to the wind jutsu Asuma-sensei is gonna teach me, pretty sure he and Kurenai-sensei are gonna ditch me for a couple days, so I'll have time to help you find out what you're chakra natures are" the pink haired kunoichi said.

Karin was positively thrilled to learn this "I'll be sure to tell Haku and Zabuza-san, are we gonna meet on the usual training grounds for Team Seven" the long lost Uzumaki girl and distant cousin of Naruto exclaimed.

Her first friend in the entire world nodded before they finished up eating, cleaned up together, then split up heading in opposite directions "You're early, Asuma's not here yet" Kurenai was the only one there on Team Ten's usual training grounds.

"Got finished much quicker than usual, Karin-chan's been helping out quite a bit to avoid having me come down with a fever again" Sakura grinned leaning against the tree waiting patiently for the man who was training her for the final round to appear.

Twenty minutes later in a puff of smoke he was stood before them "And now you're even beating me, what did you do wake up at the crack of dawn or something, never mind that, the promised wind jutsu, hand signs are this Futon: Gale Surge Jutsu" Asuma explained.

Forming hand signs much slower than he was use to so that Sakura could memorize them, before setting off the jutsu after sucking in lungfuls of air and molding his chakra to release a powerful blast of air that came from his mouth.

Sakura stood in awe at the destruction a single jutsu caused _"Wow little Asuma-kun is all grown up"_ Kushina was just as in awe as Sakura was, violet eyes wide before managing to shake her awe off at the same time Sakura did.

"Would you like me to try now Asuma-sensei" the younger kunoichi inquired turning to face Asuma with emerald orbs flashing with her strong determination and the desire to master a new element and a new jutsu.

Asuma nodded and gestured for her to go ahead "Just be careful Sakura-san alright" the beautiful raven haired woman cautioned, knowing how tricky using a new jutsu for the first time could be and that it would be difficult to control the amount of chakra molded into it.

"Try to aim in the opposite direction Haruno-san" the brown eyed male suggested as the girl slowly went through the hand signs he'd just showed her, getting every single one of them perfectly without having to practice.

Before sucking in lungfuls of air like he had, held her breath and molded her chakra expertly for the jutsu "Futon: Gale Surge Jutsu" she breathed out a strong blast of wind that nearly knocked her clean off her feet if she hadn't anchored herself to the ground with her chakra.

The destruction wasn't quite as massive as Asuma had feared _"Good job Sakura-chan now all that's left is to practice that jutsu and come back for a new one once you've mastered it"_ Hashirama praised proud of his little protege.

Clapping sounded from behind her in the next moment and she turned "Well done, practice that for a couple hours, then we'll get lunch and afterwards you're free to do whatever, once you get that one down seek me out and I'll teach you a new one" Asuma instructed.

"Perhaps I'll teach you some of my genjutsu, unfortunately none of my students have a true aptitude for it, for learning anyway, their good at breaking out of them though" Kurenai offered and the girls jade eyes lit up in excitement.

"Right I'll get this down no matter what" Sakura vowed knowing she could do it, she wouldn't fail, couldn't, her dream after all was to protect the future of the village and every person within it, it was what she'd decided on for herself after all.

As she turned and began the arduous task of practicing with her new jutsu until it was time for lunch to which afterwards the three of them split up and she headed straight for Team Seven's usual training grounds.

The others were already there, but surprisingly so was Gaara "I was bored and my siblings are still ignoring me" Gaara explained eyeing the sand that still rested snugly around his friends wrist, much like he still carried the leaf carved rock she'd given him.

Sakura grinned "I'm ready to learn what my chakra nature is now Sakura-chan" Karin stood as still as a statue as her friend approached only to have a piece of paper placed in her hand "How is a piece of paper going to help me" she pouted.

Fortunately for her "Chakra nature sensing paper, just focus a little chakra in it Karin-san" Haku instructed before Sakura could, Karin blinked her ruby irises in surprise before doing as told, the paper promptly got wet before crumbling into dirt.

"Water and earth huh not bad natures to have, and I happen to know that three of us here in the clearing will be able to teach you a few jutsu's of both natures" Zabuza smirked glad that he'd be able to help out.

Karin looked to her friend and Sakura nodded "We have the same chakra natures Karin-chan, though now I have wind to add as another element in my arsenal, so are you ready for you're first earth jutsu" the pinkette inquired.

And the girl nodded eagerly "Oh yes very much so Sakura-chan" the red haired ruby eyed girl exclaimed exuberantly eyes wide and full of excitement as Sakura went through a set of hand signs slowly and created a wall of earth.

"Now it's you're turn Karin, then we'll teach you a few water jutsu's" the raven haired teenager gestured for the young girl to try her hand at her first elemental jutsu, which turned out to be pretty horrible, but she proved to be determined in the end.

Gaara watched on "Mold you're chakra little more" the pale eyed preteen instructed carefully, an hour later Karin managed to partially get the jutsu down, to which she was promptly taught a water jutsu from Zabuza.

"It's called Suiton: Raging Waves little red, here's the hand signs" the raven haired rogue ordered in the same tone everyone was growing use to, going slowly through the hand signs needed before gesturing for the girl to try.

While she practiced that, Sakura worked on her wind natured jutsu, before the lot of them headed home for the night, ordering takeout from Ichiraku as they were to tired to even bother cooking before taking showers and sluggishly crawled into bed for some sleep.

Three days later Sakura returned to Team Ten's training grounds for a new wind jutsu "Okay Haruno-san this one is Futon: Vacuum Sphere" Asuma ran through the newest hand signs, still not quite believing the girl had managed to master her first wind jutsu so quickly.

Kurenai was absent this time so it was just the two of them "I think I got it thanks Asuma-sensei, Futon: Vacuum Sphere" Sakura inhaled deeply after speeding through the hand signs and exhaled a blast of air in bullet-like blasts.

Though on the first try it didn't quite go as she'd like, but that's what made practice perfect as she headed off to help Karin train in her own chakra natures, and a couple days after that making it five in total Sakura was back once again to learn her third wind jutsu.

Which turned out to be Futon: Flower Scattering Dance a cyclone of petals which could be directed and infused with more chakra as needed once the jutsu had been cast and two days later after that Sakura learned the gale palm jutsu.

And three days after that she was taught the multi-layered gale jutsu which would prove very effective against any jutsu that Dosu threw at her before the lot of them knew it and after learning a few genjutsu from Kurenai, it was time for the final round of the Chunin Exams.

Sakura was ready, she'd trained very hard all month, mastered wind nature, and the multiple wind natured jutsu's she'd been taught _"Good luck Sakura-chan and no matter what happens we'll be proud of you"_ Kushina hugged the young girl tightly.

" _Indeed and be prepared for anything that might happen, this is the day Sand and Sound will make their move and we'll find out if our efforts in swaying Gaara to our side have proved fruitful"_ Hashirama nodded as she ran down the streets to the arena to join her fellow contestants for what would be the longest and possibly worst day of their lives.


	12. Chunin Exams Final Round&Leaf Assualt

And here they all were finally after two long awaited months at the final round of the Chunin Exams, the ten contestants were gathered in the arena for a battle royal "Oi Naruto where's Sasuke" Sakura immediately noticed their other teammates absence.

"Who knows I think Kakashi-sensei is still training him" Naruto shrugged, he was just glad he wasn't late so that he wasn't disqualified he wanted to show that no good Neji what for, for beating up on the girl he liked and nearly killing her.

Unseen to them except for Sakura were her two ghostly partners in crime _"I think I'm going to go find them just in case to make sure nothing has happened to them"_ Kushina chattered getting the feeling that things were not going to be good in the least for the entire Leaf Village.

" _Probably for the best Kushina, I'll stay here with Sakura-chan to keep an eye on things here"_ Hashirama nodded wisely, for once being over cautious, no one could fault him, he snooped around the Leaf Village daily and learned things no one else could learn.

Sad thing was Sakura couldn't speak of such things for fear of being found out and killed so everything about the plan Sound/Sand were going to enact was tucked carefully away in the crevices of her brain.

That didn't stop her however from being just as if not even more wary than one of her ghosts in crime especially when Gaara ignored her, Sakura just knew something was wrong, his siblings/sensei had to have done something to him or someone had to have at least.

Nothing was right "Hey Sakura, Naruto, I think two people are trying to wave you down" Shikamaru spoke suddenly off to the side of them as they waited for their proctor to arrive, they were a bit early after all.

Both Naruto and Sakura turned their heads towards the civilian crowd section to spot Tsunami and Inari "Now there's a surprise and look Zabuza and Haku are sitting with them" the pinkette raised her hand lightly and gave the quartet a little wave.

While Naruto's response was a little more exuberant "Oops hehehe sorry Sakura-chan you know" the blonde knucklehead smiled sheepishly when she rapped her knuckles on his skull gently as the two civilians from their first mission sat down.

Guess after this Zabuza and Haku really would be going back with them now "Ready to lose you pink haired freak" Kankuro suddenly joined the line of final round contestants and earned a fiery emerald eyed glare in response.

It made him back up a couple of steps "If anything Dosu Kinuta will be the one losing, because Sakura isn't someone that will back down from a fight even against a person who uses sound as a weapon" Shino commented.

Earning a sweet smile from the girl in question that didn't help her tension in the least though and she remained completely on edge "Ah so you did show up after all" Dosu arrived in the next moment still the same as he had been in the Forest of Death.

And ready for a bit of revenge on the girl for humiliating he and his team during the second round, Sakura clenched her hands into fists lifted her head high and ignored the genin from Sound "Hmm what are we waiting on for the moon to rise" Neji grumbled irritated and impatient.

This got him an agitated glare from three people "The proctor" Gaara rumbled out in that gravelly tone of his, but it was different, almost like how he'd first started out when he'd come to the Leaf Village over a month and one week ago.

Something was seriously wrong now "Kami this is ridiculous where is he anyway" Temari complained loudly and Sakura was seriously tempted to deck the girl in the face and be disqualified because her skills would come in handy should all hell break loose.

But she managed to suppress her anger just as the proctor for the final round finally arrived _"Ooh Genma's turned into such a hottie, Kakashi-kun and Sasuke-chan are running a little late that's all, they'll be here"_ the violet eyed red haired woman returned.

Rambling utter nonsense at first before directing the conversation to what it was supposed to be "I am you're proctor for the final round Genma Shiranui, Sasuke's match has been moved to the last round as his training is running a little late" Genma announced.

Going through the various rules and killing wasn't out of bound, like she said, she wasn't afraid to kill and Sakura knew it would come down to that during her match, Dosu was out for revenge, funny thing so was she.

"Alright then now that you know what to expect everyone but Uzumaki and Hyuga off the field and up to the balcony, we'll begin the first match of the final rounds" the brunette clapped his hands sending the genin scrambling.

Naruto sent his female teammate an imperceptible look "Wi..Wish me luck Sakura-chan" the Uzumaki boy murmured before she got to far, Sakura turned, shot towards the boy who was more than just a friend, he'd become her little brother.

And wrapped her arms around his waist in a quick bone crushing hug "You can do it Naruto, I believe in you, you know" the young kunoichi winked saying his favorite verbal tick and before she could get scolded was gone up to the balcony with nary a sigh of the wind to signal her departure from the arena.

Genma couldn't believe his eyes a girl who could successfully execute the body flicker technique without a single wisp of smoke nor a sound, she was a genin, he shook his head and focused on the two boys in front of him.

"Okay let the first match between Naruto Uzumaki and Neji Hyuga begin" Genma gave the duo the signal and they leaped at each other as he hung back to watch how the fight would play out, up in the stands Sakura was stood between Shino and Shikamaru.

Playing it safe for the moment "Between them who do you think is going to win Sakura" the Nara Heir questioned narrow brown eyes scanning the arena below them to keep an eye on the two battling genin.

Next to him she was doing the same though at the question she turned her head in his direction "Naruto no doubt, he can do it, I believe in him" she nodded, having absolute faith in her teammates they would all do it together.

Even if she felt that things would go wrong before the fights could be finished, jade eyes shifted off to the side of them to rest on Gaara _"I don't know Sakura-chan, but they obviously did something to him"_ the brunette attached to her frowned.

Knowing that she was worried coupled with being completely on edge it was a wonder she hadn't fainted yet "You seem a bit on edge Sakura, why because you keep glancing around warily" the Aburame Heir commented suddenly.

Startling the girl just a bit and she jumped lightly in her place before nodding seriously indicating she thought something was going to happen and whatever it was, was going to be bad for the whole entirety of the Leaf Village.

Both boys on either side of her straightened and gazed around warily themselves while the fight between Neji and Naruto raged on down below them, it was obviously coming to a close because Neji was boasting about his win.

"A loser is always a loser after all destiny cannot be changed" the brunette shook his head in disappointment launching into what he deemed the final attack to take the boy out, only it turned out to be a shadow clone.

His opponent jumped out of the ground in front of him and Neji got solidly punched flat on his back with a fist to the chin, instantly being knocked out, now hopefully he would change his ways after having his ass kicked.

The knucklehead pranced around as cheers filled the arena until he was kicked off the field and up to the balcony "Did you see Sakura-chan, did you see I kicked ass believe it" Naruto was grinning his patented whiskered grin when he appeared at the top of the steps.

Where his teammate was waiting for him with open arms "I did Naruto and I am proud of you, no doubt so is you're mother and father" Sakura enveloped him into another bone crushing hug that lasted a little longer than the first one.

" _Of course I'm proud of you my little Naruto-kun you know"_ the Uzumaki woman that was attached to her exclaimed wishing she could do the same and hug her son but it was impossible and she couldn't help the tears that filled her violet eyes.

As pride like never before filled her, _"Please continue helping him along the way Sakura-chan and he'll grow up to become one of the most excellent Hokage the Leaf Village has ever seen"_ the First Hokage spoke wisely.

It was definitely a heart warming moment between the duo who were more like brother and sister than anything else and the hug seemed to last forever before the next round contestants were called "What a drag" the raven haired lazy boy groaned.

Especially when his name was called as well as the teenage girl from Sand "What's the matter Nara got a problem with women or something" the teal eyed blonde snapped just a teeny bit on edge herself which tipped Sakura off.

Not only that but she kept shooting her youngest brother wary looks proving that something had been done to him, whatever it was, wasn't going to be good and she wished there was some way she could warn Sasuke before his match to be careful and not go overboard with his attacks.

"Yeah as a matter of fact I do have a problem with loudmouthed women, their to troublesome" Shikamaru grumbled a slouch to his shoulders as they set off down the stairs together, knowing better than to forfeit his match.

That wouldn't go over well not after all the training he'd done "Chauvinistic pig I'll show you loudmouth woman" Temari snarled angrily stomping her way after Shikamaru until they were stood opposite each other on the arena field below before hundreds of eyes.

"He's going to forfeit at the last moment, because he has no desire to fight" Shino commented suddenly and Sakura nodded, it was just as she'd thought after all, keeping her jade eyes glued to the fighting duo on the field.

Behind them were the two spirits attached to her _"Should we go have another look around Hashirama to make sure"_ Kushina bit her lip feeling more nervous than before, this was definitely turning out to be quite different than she'd imagined it would be.

" _Probably a good idea Kushina, though I'll stay here with Sakura-chan just in case"_ Hashirama finally relented with a serious nod and so Kushina floated off around the arena checking each row going over every single person that she could anyway before returning.

Looking rather depressed, they all knew something was going to happen, but couldn't figure out where the feeling originated from so the only thing left was to deal with whatever came their way and pick themselves up in the aftermath.

The girl their souls were attached to clenched her hands around the balcony railing tightly and the two boys on either side of her heard the audible groaning of the iron bar as her hands tightened more and more the longer the fight between Shikamaru and Temari wore on.

By the time Shikamaru forfeited his match in the end, the poor bar looked as if it had been twisted into literal knots, it was about to be abused even more as Genma called out from the field "Shino Aburame and Kankuro you're match is next" the brunette Jonin stated.

Kankuro raised his hand in the next moment "Um I forfeit" the brunette from Sand stated, which left only two fights left as Shino was named winner of the forfeited match, not many could tell but he was very angry that he hadn't had a chance to fight.

"Very well then we'll have the fourth round contestants come down Sakura Haruno and Dosu Kinuta or do either one of you wish to forfeit you're match as well" Genma leveled his brown eyes at the two genin.

As they made their way down to the field and stood opposite each other "No way, that girl and I have some unsettled business and I don't intend on letting her get away, this match will be to the death" the genin from Sound stated in a bored tone as if there was no doubts in his mind he'd win.

Sakura's eye twitched in silent irritation "Funny, I was just about to say the same thing, I don't intend on allowing you to harm Sasuke or any person that's precious to me" the young Leaf Kunoichi cocked her hip out and gave a dangerous smile.

That was definitely off putting to a lot of people except for those that knew her "If you're both ready then let the fourth match of the final rounds begin" the Jonin to the side of them brought down his hand signaling they could begin fighting.

Neither combatant moved an inch because when Dosu looked into Sakura's jade eyes he was caught in a genjutsu of her creation, then she shot forward like a projectile weapon as he broke free and before he had a chance to defend himself.

Legs were underneath his arm pits and he was being flipped and his head smashed harshly against the ground while his opponent landed gracefully on her feet, the genin from Sound looked furious that she'd gotten to make the first move.

Dazing him slightly "Why you little" Dosu snarled sending a wave of sound after the girl who'd just pissed him off to epic proportions, it was the jutsu she was counting on as mischief sparked in her viridian orbs.

Followed by pulling out a scroll "Summoning Jutsu: Wind Style: Flower Scattering Dance" Sakura sped through hand signs to unseal her wind jutsu that rebounded the jutsu Dosu sent at her onto himself and he was swept clear off his feet.

To slam harshly into the arena wall blood soaked the bandages around his mouth indicating the impact had done massive damage internally followed by blood trickling down from his ears _"Nice one told you it would work Sakura-chan"_ the violet eyed red haired woman grinned triumphantly.

Every eye was pinned to Dosu as he slid down the arena wall to his feet and he stumbled forward intent to kill in his gaze "I..I'm not going to lo..lose to a bitch li..like you" he obviously hadn't counted on her learning a new elemental nature just to fight him.

"Keep on Dosu and I really will kill you, I can harden my heart at a moments notice to defend my village and the people in it, my dream is to protect the future of this village and all the people that reside in it" she held out a kunai waiting for him.

Genma narrowed his brown eyes in response wondering how the girl could have such a dream "Shall I call it, I can interfere if I think one of you can't go on" the brunette piped in suddenly, neither combatant would relent to the other.

As Dosu charged "Revenge for that incident in the forest of death shall be mine" he slammed his hands into her body unleashing the strongest jutsu he could manage in his current state, when nothing happened he tried it again.

Sakura's lips curved upwards "Pity for you then Dosu, you're life ends here" the pinkette stated in a dark tone of voice and right before his very eyes the girl he was stood in front of faded out of existence and he recognized the genjutsu for what it was.

To late and he couldn't dodge the blow that came straight for his temple, he dropped to the ground lifelessly, chest rising and falling shallowly taking his last breaths or so everyone thought "Winner of the fourth match Sakura Haruno" Genma called it.

And then to everyone's surprise she bent hands glowing the brightest green anyone thought possible and healed her opponent "Wh..Why I thought you were going to kill me" Dosu choked out as his life was returned to him.

"Just remember this Dosu, it takes more courage to heal an enemy than to kill one, I'm a medic ninja and you are nothing more than a genin who started off on the wrong path, you can change, someone just has to show you the way" Sakura stated wisely.

Walking calmly from the arena and towards the stairs that led up to the balcony leaving behind complete and utter silence _"Nicely said Sakura, nicely said I've taught you right"_ the brunette who's soul was attached to her smiled.

Taking his turn for once to hug his little protege as Dosu was carted away on a stretcher by medics "You were totally awesome Sakura-chan, though I don't get it when did you learn wind nature, Kakashi-sensei said it was impossible and what was up when you guys were standing still" Naruto chattered.

Once she breached the top of the steps to join the others and they were given a thirty minute break to allow Sasuke time to show up for the final fight of the Chunin Exam's "Asuma-sensei taught me and it was easy and that Naruto was genjutsu's of my own creation" the pinkette explained.

"So Ino wasn't just rambling utter nonsense that one day when she blew into the Nara Compound ranting and raving how you were trying to steal our sensei and training grounds" the Nara Heir snorted eyeing his teammate how was sat in the crowd.

Looking utterly bored, peridot irises turned Shikamaru's way "For the record I wasn't trying to steal anything, Asuma-sensei offered to teach me, and I had no choice in where he trained me" she stated dryly in a humorless tone.

In the next minute she jumped as a hand landed on her shoulder, she craned her neck around to spy her friend, he was staring at her with intense pale green orbs and he nodded just barely noticeably in the direction of the stairs.

Naruto watched the duo head down the steps out of sight and hearing range "I'm sorry for ignoring you Sakura, it's just they told me if I tried to make contact before now they would kill you" Gaara spoke once they were far enough away.

"Don't worry about it Gaara, I'm just glad that they didn't do anything to you, that was my main fear here" Sakura blew out a relieved breath much like the spirits that had been attached to her since the moment she'd been born.

They were definitely pleased to hear that Gaara was still on Leaf's side _"Now would be a good time to ask him what's going to happen Sakura-chan, using a chakra suppression/barrier/cloaking tag"_ Kushina suggested.

Off to the side her companion as a spirit nodded _"Yes so that we may prepare for a fight if it comes down to that in the end"_ Hashirama stated wisely, onyx eyes shifting this way and that as the two preteens disappeared from sight.

Sakura took a deep breath "Okay Gaara, you have to tell me just what is it that Sand and Sound are planning so that I can protect my village, I know it's hard to betray all you know but we need you on our side" the pink haired kunoichi held out her hand.

In hopes he'd take it, Gaara's pale green eyes shined with indecision for several long agonizing moments "Orochimaru is planning a Coup on Leaf, he's up there going to kill you're Hokage in Kage Booth and yes of course I'm on you're side" the red head took her hand.

"They'll see Gaara in the end, I'll make sure of it, just try to be careful during you're fight with Sasuke and expend as little chakra as necessary so that you won't be to tired to join the fight with us" the young Leaf Kunoichi instructed gently.

Gaara nodded his head in understanding looking indecisive once more "C..Could I have another good luck charm" the young Sand Shinobi requested shyly cheeks tinged pink once more as his face flushed in embarrassment.

Kushina and Hashirama gaped in surprise while their young protege looked stunned at the request _"Indulge him Sakura-chan, indulge him"_ the red haired woman squealed loudly when the hopeful expression started faded.

" _Might as well plus he did ask very nicely"_ the brunette sighed covering his eyes, left with no other choice the young pink haired girl leaned forward and connected her lips to the boy opposite her, the first kiss, second technically that she'd initiated.

His arms came up to wrap around her waist hesitantly, as their lips met in a clumsy kiss, complete with bumping of the foreheads and clacking of the teeth before the two twelve year old's pulled away cheeks red and silly grins on their lips.

Less than three minutes later the redness to their cheeks faded and they were both sporting more serious expressions as they straightened themselves out "This is it Gaara the moment that will change everything are you ready for it" Sakura asked his hand clasped in her own.

As she took down the tag she'd activated his hand tightened in response "Yes because you taught me the power of love and that it can determine the outcome of a fight" Gaara nodded seriously and with that they started back up the steps.

Halfway there, the took a couple steps away from each other and dropped each others hand as they breathed the top of the stairs and joined the members of their own village just as Sasuke and Kakashi appeared in the arena in a swirl of leaves.

The final match was now finally underway "May Gaara of Sand please come down here so that we can start the fifth and final match of the Chunin Exams before the judges decide on who was impressive enough to become Chunin" Genma called.

Gaara used the sand body flicker technique and burst into sand particles before reassembling down below opposite his friend, who wouldn't admit that they were friends "Ready to lose Gaara of Sand" Sasuke boasted as confidently as possible.

Which wasn't much even he knew something was off, Gaara closed his eyes and nodded silently, Genma brought hand down and the match began, it was eerily quiet and the tension was quickly rising in the air.

Sakura chewed on her lip furiously, eyes scanning this way and that trying to come up with a plan "Yo Sakura-chan what's up you look pretty on edge there" Kakashi appeared on the balcony railing before her and she nearly screamed in fright.

Before managing to quickly calm down "Kakashi-sensei there's something I need to talk to you about" the pinkette exclaimed words falling from her lips like a waterfall and Kakashi blinked at her in surprise.

Then nodded towards stairs "Come on then Sakura-chan, we have some time before the fight truly starts" the silver haired nin shrugged knowing it had to be important if she could wait until the final round was over.

With that they were stood more than halfway down the steps "Sound and Sand are planning an attack, Orochimaru is up there in the Kage booth with Hokage-sama, Gaara told me" not more than a second passed before the whole plan was ousted.

She knew she should have said something sooner, but it had been to dangerous until that exact moment in time "You're certain of this Sakura-chan, is Gaara-kun on our side as well or the opposing side" the Copy Ninja grimaced.

A shinobi's work was never done it seemed "Our side, my favorite quote after all is that many little ripples can change the tide in one's favor, with myself, Naruto, Sasuke, Karin and Haku having befriended him, Gaara was swayed to our side" she announced.

Her sensei blew out a breath, ruffled her hair and then vanished in a swirl of leaves while she headed back up to the balcony, just as the most blood curdling spine chilling scream echoed around the arena.

The sound came from the round sphere of sand, within was Gaara, on the outside was stood Sasuke, hand wedged into the defense of sand, a look of stunned shock in his gaze, followed by wariness as he hurriedly leaped away.

Apparently he knew he'd gone a little to overboard with whatever jutsu he'd used "Teme is an idiot" the blonde on Team Seven shook his head as the sand started falling away to reveal an injured Gaara.

Who looked hurt at what had happened, clearly the boy had never been injured until just then, it was Sakura who caught it, the little white feathers floating down all around the arena as Gaara lost control of himself allowing the tailed beast inside of him to gain command of his host.

It was definitely not looking good "I think you're right Naruto, but we have bigger things to worry about" Sakura sped through a set of hand signs and flared her chakra outwards to break the genjutsu that would put them to sleep.

" _Um Sakura-chan we've got a problem, Hashirama's gone, like gone, gone I can't even feel his spirit anymore"_ Kushina appeared at her side suddenly and Sakura wanted to bash her head against something in frustration.

Not only that when she was able to focus down below Gaara was being taken away by his two siblings as Sound and Sand attacked, Sasuke stood there in the middle of the arena staring at his hands in shock, disgust at himself clear in his onyx eyes.

Sakura slammed her hand down on the mangled balcony bar, before leaping clear over the edge down below to the arena and launched herself at her teammate just as someone tried to behead him from behind while he was distracted.

"I..I didn't mean it Sakura, I never meant to hurt him, I didn't think my jutsu would work and I was just trying not to make it look like I was losing on purpose" Sasuke was upset for the first time she'd seen him in a good long while.

The girl shook her head "And you can tell him that once we get out of this mess Sasuke alright, I'm sure he'll accept you're apology, but right now we have to make sure he doesn't get to far" the pinkette instructed.

Arming herself with her tantou and with jade eyes flashing in determination charged forward and sliced through flesh before swinging around and thrusting her fist out filled with chakra that sent the Sound Jonin careening forward into arena wall.

Creating a dent "We're here to help as well Sakura" Haku was suddenly at her side followed by Zabuza and Naruto, that's where the knucklehead had gone, to get those two, it was a good idea and they could definitely use the extra help.

"By the way brat after this whole mess is taken care of we'll be going back to the Land of Waves" Zabuza grumbled not sure how he and his apprentice had been dragged into this mess, but whatever he would help out.

Sasuke rose to his feet "Do you really think we can stop them by ourselves Sakura" the raven haired boy on Team Seven grimaced still looking at his hand in shock, he really could have killed Gaara if his attack had been in a different place.

Bile rose in his throat and he felt sick to his stomach "If you work together with Shikamaru, sorry Sakura-chan I failed in warning Hokage-sama" Kakashi returned a grim expression on his face and regret plain to see in his mismatched eyes.

Viridian rose to the Kage booth to see a purple barrier "Can someone please tell me what's going on" Shikamaru groaned as the lot of them started forward through the hole in the arena wall that had been made earlier by someone.

"Why is Gaara acting all crazy like that anyway" Karin joined them partway more than a little clueless as to what was going on but wanting to help defend her village and friends that she'd made since coming there.

Sakura grit her teeth "Tailed Beast sealed inside of him, plus I think someone, I don't think his sensei or siblings, but someone did something to him before the start of the fight, which made him more susceptible to losing control of it" the pinkette stated.

Glancing over her shoulder into worried violet eyes, Hashirama was still missing and it felt as if a big part of her life had been ripped away _"I think Orochimaru reanimated him Sakura-chan and he's fighting with all his might to return to us"_ the red head announced quietly.

Her hands clenched into fists "Kakashi sent me to lead you guys to Gaara, while he handles taking care of some others, I should warn you, the lot of you are being tailed by nine Chunin level shinobi" it was Pakkun.

The ninken was familiar to Team Seven and all three of them let out sighs of relief "Just how is a mutt going to help us find Gaara" the Nara Heir groaned thinking this whole thing was troublesome no doubt.

Pakkun snapped his jaws at the young boy and bit his hand "For instance my nose you brat" Pakkun growled once he'd released the hand so that they could continue running, while keeping a close watch on their pursuers.

"One of us is going to have to distract them, be bait essentially and possible sacrifice their lives" the raven haired rogue from mist grumbled in discontent as he realized the enemy was gaining on them and they would never reach the Sand Genin in time.

Sakura inhaled deeply as they all stopped _"No Sakura-chan you can't, don't do this what would Hashirama say"_ the Uzumaki woman attached to her for some reason immediately knew what the girl her soul was attached to was going to do.

Emerald eyes softened imperceptibly in her direction "I'll do it, Shikamaru you're needed to come up with a plan, this is a seal that will suppress the tailed beast inside of Gaara, sand is weak against water and use fire jutsu's only Sasuke is that understood" the pinkette exhaled.

"But Sakura-chan you can't, we need you" the ruby eyed red head whirled horror and tears etched into those ruby irises, Sakura didn't turn to face her instead stared in the opposite direction for fear of breaking down herself.

It felt like her heart was in her throat "We understand Sakura, we'll make sure to keep these guys safe and you better catch up with us you hear" the raven haired teen nodded realizing now that it would be impossible to convince the girl otherwise.

Naruto and Sasuke's hearts dropped into their stomachs "Haku's right Sakura-chan you better come back without a single scratch on you, you hear" the blonde on Team Seven burst out hands clenched into fists.

"Precisely or if I die to, I'll make sure you're life in heaven is like hell" their broody teammate crossed his arms with an irritated Tch, his usual, but there was no denying it anymore, his teammates had grown on him and he cared.

She turned her head and graced them all with the brightest smile imaginable "Baka out of all of us, besides Zabuza-san, Haku and Shikamaru I have the greatest chance to pull this maneuver off" Sakura stuck her tongue out, then was gone in a swirl of cherry blossoms.

While the others continued on _"Do you really have to do this Sakura-chan, what about Hashirama, I'll never be able to face him again if he comes back and you're injured"_ Kushina tried to dissuade the girl from her decision one last time tears in her violet eyes.

Emerald eyes softened "I'll be fine Kushina-chan, just have faith in me, Hashirama does and I'll catch up with those guys in no time" she swiped at her own tear filled eyes as she pulled out a four medium scrolls and jumped down in the area their pursuers would have no choice but to pass through.

And started drawing a barrier seal just hoping to kami that none of the Sound Shinobi had earth nature chakra in their possession or that they knew the head hunter jutsu, when she was done, she went around placing the scrolls beneath genjutsu/barrier tags.

Now all the was left was to wait patiently for the nine Sound Shinobi to arrive, one would be her second kill and the rest would be hopefully handled by a Jonin that was possibly tailing them that was on their side.

She bit her lip harshly _"What on earth is going on, what are you doing Sakura-chan"_ Hashirama broke free of the reanimation jutsu finally, it had been a struggle if he was being honest, but he hadn't expected to return to chaos.

The girl he'd been with since she was born swung around "H..Hashirama you're back" tears fell from her eyes like droplets, she'd thought for sure she would never get to see him again, the pain she felt at his disappearance faded.

And it gave her the courage needed to steel her nerves for the incoming confrontation "Well, well if it isn't the little girl that fought Dosu, to bad you didn't have the courage to kill him" the one in the lead shook his head in disappointment.

Jade eyes narrowed "It doesn't take courage to kill not once you already have, what I did was gave him a chance to change by sparing his life, that takes true courage not that any of you bloody bastards would understand it" Sakura spat furiously.

Making a hand sign to activate the barrier seals she'd drawn then turned on her heel to face the opposite direction tantou held out and ready to take her second kill, well that's what she was planning before her innate clumsiness got the best of her.

Blood splattered across her face not of her own and viridian orbs widened "Can't believe I lost to you of all brats" Dosu coughed out thick globs of blood and it dribbled down his bandage free chin, he was stood before her, sword protruding from his stomach as she landed on her butt.

Sakura stared at him eyes wide in disbelief "Why did you help me" the pinkette asked hardly able to believe what had happened as that sword was brutally yanked from from his stomach and he fell forward onto his knee's.

"Damn kid I refused to be in debt of you for sparing my life, e..eve..even if it meant be..becoming a t..traitor" the fourteen year old growled light quickly fading from his onyx irises, Sakura's mouth dropped open in horror.

Then came the biggest surprise of all "Y..You lo..look pre..pretty stupid kid, I..I kno..know you ca..can't heal me f..from th..this so I'm t..taking pay..payment" the raven haired teen leaned forward with the last of his strength.

And stole a kiss from the girl as the remaining light faded from his eyes and his body fell forward head resting in her lap, Sakura sat there in horrified silence, fingers pressed to her lips "He got exactly as he deserved" the Sound Shinobi that wielded the sword smirked.

Those words unleashed fury the likes he never imagined from the young genin as she carefully shut Dosu's eyes making sure he was comfortable and stood "In my heart Dosu will be considered a hero for breaking free of the shackles placed on him by you disgusting people" the pink haired girl stated.

Hands clenched tightly into fists so when the sword was thrust at her, she knocked it clear out of her opponents hands and it went sailing off into the forest "You're not a normal brat are you" the man was wary now.

Especially when killing intent filled the air "No not in the least, my nickname during the academy was the Pink Haired Demon and you just unleashed her so face my wrath" Sakura shot forward quicker than what her opponent thought possible.

When she was within range she thrust her tightly clenched fist forward filled with chakra and landed a solid punch to the Sound Shinobi's stomach, he went flying backwards to crash harshly into a tree.

"I..Impossible you..you're just a little girl" he choked out coughing up blood as Sakura approached a cold emotionless look in her emerald eyes and tantou held out ready to end his life just as she'd vowed.

Sakura narrowed her eyes "Nothing is impossible so long as one has the will, the instincts and the abilities to survive" she stated coldly plunging her tantou hilt deep into the man's chest cavity before pulling it out brutally and leaping backwards.

To face the rest of the Sound Shinobi, who all looked a little shocked "Haruno-san leave that lot to me, you should take a break or try to catch up with the others" Asuma jumped down next to her in the next moment, eyeing the two dead Sound Shinobi.

Followed by eight more stuck in a barrier _"Let it go Sakura-chan on the bright side we have Hashirama back with us"_ the violet eyed red haired woman manifested a little to give the girl who was like a daughter to her a reassuring hug.

Knowing exactly what was going through Sakura's head _"He sacrificed himself for you Sakura-chan don't weep and honor him the way I taught you to honor those that died on the battlefield"_ the First Hokage said wisely.

Doing the same as his ghostly partner in crime had by giving the girl a reassuring hug, she needed it after the last several minutes "Thank you Asuma-sensei" the pinkette relented to the demands and went to turn on her heel.

Before pausing, in the next second she whipped out a scroll and hastily wrote a seal on it, to which Dosu's body was promptly sealed within so he wouldn't be forgotten, she would find a good place to bury him so that he could be honored like all fallen shinobi, who'd given up their lives for a noble cause.

Even if he hadn't outright admitted that her words had gotten to him, the fact that he'd come to help her despite proclaiming that he refused to owe her a debt spoke a thousand untold words "Hurry now Haruno-san" the raven haired Jonin waved the girl off.

Not commenting on the fact she'd taken the Sound Genin's body, something had happened he hadn't been present for, but now wasn't the time to question her, there would be time enough for that later, right now he had to focus on the eight enemy before him.

As she sped off into the distance after her friends in order to stop Gaara, by the time she arrived everything was pretty much settled "Sakura-chan" Naruto spotted her first and ran over to the girl to give her one of his patented bone crushing hugs.

"Whats the matter Sakura-chan you look as if you've been through literal hell" Karin inquired gently seeing the dead look in her friends eyes, the blood stains on her clothes, in her hair and on her face, it was slightly scary.

Her teeth ground audibly for their ears to hear "Th..That damn Dosu he came out of no where took a sword for me, he's dead" Sakura admitted quietly, though there were no tears just that slightly haunted look in her emerald orbs.

"I think we should worry more about those three right now, we can talk about that later Sakura" Sasuke didn't understand what was so wrong with the Sound Genin who'd attacked them being dead, but he didn't dare comment on it.

Sakura took a deep breath and steeled her nerves before focusing her gaze on the Sand Siblings "Be careful Sakura-chan, the two older ones have refused to listen to us no matter what we've told them" Haku warned as she squared her shoulders.

And marched forward "Let the brat handle this you brats, if anyone can get through to them, it's her" Zabuza held back the two punks on the girls team, while Haku gripped Karin's hand to keep her from marching forward.

"This is such a drag" Shikamaru groaned looking utterly exhausted it had been one heck of a fight to say the least now he was tired and wanted to go home take a nice relaxing shower, crawl into his bed and get some sleep.

But even he couldn't help but watch as his fellow genin stomped her way over to the Sand Siblings fury etched into her jade irises, her hand struck out catching both Temari and Kankuro cross their cheeks "Do you have any idea what you've done" the pinkette snapped.

Temari and Kankuro reeled back "All this because of you're bloody fucking pride, well done, I applaud you for being utter morons and Gaara, you're own brother, the boy you should love and protect would have done anything for you" she raged on.

Fear crawling down every persons spine "Ignored him, treated him like he was nothing more than a tool, an ace, and yet you never acknowledged him the way he wanted to be acknowledged, family should be the most important thing to anyone" Sakura ranted madly.

Pacing back and forth "Wh..What do you know, Gaara's nothing but a mo…." Kankuro started not liking that he was being scolded for something that wasn't his fault only to shrink back as KI hit him square in the face suffocating him.

"Shut up and listen good Kankuro, you want to call him a monster, why do you think he is that way, you and you, the older siblings he loves from the bottom of his heart and the village he wants nothing more than to be acknowledged by, you molded him into that" the girl spat furiously.

Both teenagers reeled back in shock at the revelations as all they knew was ripped brutally out from beneath their feet "Now they see oh and Orochimaru betrayed you, killed you're Kage, impersonated him so what was the whole point of this little coup" she finished.

Chest heaving from exertion "W..We..We're sorry there's nothing we can say to defend our actions or apologize enough to Gaara, we're the worst older siblings in history" Temari put her head in her hands shame wafting from her waves.

As everything they were being told sunk in finally "Gaara will forgive you, start with an apology, treat him better, be kind and cherish him because you are all each other have" Sakura lowered to her knee's exhaustion creeping up on her.

"Love is the key to power unimaginable, if you have that no one can stand in you're way…." she trailed off, head resting against her knee's as darkness took over and she fell asleep right there just glad that she'd finally gotten through to Gaara's older siblings.

Kankuro couldn't believe his eyes "I can't believe her, she fell asleep" the brunette gaped as Zabuza snorted and stalked forward to pick the girl up, while they rose and carried Gaara his arms thrown over their shoulders to which they started the trek back to the arena.

To find out what had happened all out chaos had broken out and the Third Hokage was deemed dead, Orochimaru payed a heavy price that day for attacking the Leaf Village, as everyone headed home to get some shut eye.

" _We raised her right Hashirama, Sakura-chan will become a kunoichi the likes this world has never seen, we're proud of you"_ later that night Kushina and Hashirama appeared in Sakura's bedroom, she was alone for once in her bed.

And stared down at the young girl they'd been helping raise since she'd been born _"Indeed Kushina, though it's worrisome, Dosu's death has made an impact on her and that won't be easy to get over"_ Hashirama warned as they settled on either side of Sakura as she rested for the rest of day and all through the night.


	13. New Mission: Find Tsunade Senju Part 1

It was a week later after the funeral of the Third Hokage and many others who'd given their lives in the attack, along with a private burial for Dosu in the forest outside the village and just a few hours before Zabuza and Haku left with Tsunami and Inari.

That Team Seven, their sensei and the three extras sat down to have a talk "How you doing brat" Zabuza decided to get the conversation going, they'd all seen it that slightly haunted look, that had faded during the last week.

But there was no denying it, she'd gotten hurt somehow by the Sound Genin's death "I'm alright Zabuza, I know what you're all thinking and yes it hurt to know he died trying to help the right side, but I'm honoring him in the only way I can, his death wasn't in vain after all" Sakura said.

Eyes bright and full of the life that had been spared by another persons death "At least you're talking about it and not bottling it all up like I thought you would" Sasuke scoffed, though even he couldn't help but feel relieved she was doing well.

"Kind of sucks that old man Hokage died though, gonna miss him, cause he was a like a grandpa to me and poor Konohamaru I can't even begin to imagine what the kid is going through" Naruto spoke up lowering his head looking depressed.

Sakura's eyes softened _"My poor Naruto-kun and then we still have mister depression over here you know"_ Kushina frowned knowing exactly how much her son had adored the Third Hokage, before jerking her thumb over her shoulder.

To her ghostly partner in crime, who was definitely depressed at the death of his old student _"Don't worry about me worry about yourself Sakura-chan I'll be alright"_ Hashirama mustered up a small smile for a brief second.

Before her attention was drawn back to the conversation at hand "Either way I'm proud of you Sakura-chan, and if you ever feel the need to talk you know where I'll be" Kakashi piped in giving his student a look that told her everything he left unsaid.

The memorial stone, which had been added to during the last week "So guess this is it then you guys are gonna leave us" Karin sulked looking just as depressed as her distant cousin and she was still no closer to having her own genin team either.

"Relax Karin, Zabuza-sama and I will be making frequent visits, plus you guys are more than welcome to come to the Land of Waves to see us as well" Haku didn't hesitate in extending the offer as they all stood from the booth they were seated at.

Now it was time to split up, the entirety of Team Seven plus their extra watched Zabuza and Haku walk away vanishing in the direction of the gates where Tsunami and Inari were no doubt waiting and left the Leaf Village.

With that the members of Team Seven went to split up themselves "Wait just a moment Sakura-chan, Lord Third's secretary gave this to me to give to you" the silver haired sensei of Team Seven stopped his female student.

The boys long gone at that moment and only Karin remained at her friends side as Sakura turned to take the package "I..I don't understand shouldn't this go to Konohamaru or even Asuma-sensei" the pinkette frowned in confusion.

Jade eyes shifting a fraction of an inch to the two spirits that were stuck to her _"I don't know either Sakura-chan what about you Hashirama what would that old badger give her"_ the violet eyed red haired woman turned her attention on the depressed spirit.

Who shrugged himself _"No clue but whatever you do Sakura-chan don't open it in front of anyone is that understood"_ the brunette cautioned as Kakashi saluted the two girls and disappeared in a puff of smoke leaving Sakura and Karin to themselves.

To head to the Haruno House "So what do you think it is Sakura-chan" the ruby eyed red head prodded once they were ensconced in Sakura's room, the package sat before them on the bed, unassuming but their was trepidation in the receivers heart.

"I'm not ready to open it yet" the pink haired girl frowned tears gathering in her eyes suddenly as it hit her that the old man really was dead and she was never going to get to go in his office and ask a whole bunch of questions of him ever again.

Karin freaked out "It's okay Sakura-chan you don't have to force yourself, I'm here, I'm here" the Uzumaki girl hugged her friend close as the first tears since the fight appeared and the girl cried and cried and cried.

The sound tore at her parents heart strings and the heart strings of those in the room with her _"We should leave them be for a while Hashirama, there's only so much a young girl can take you know"_ the Uzumaki woman attached to the girl suggested.

Hashirama nodded feeling her sadness all the way to the very core of his being _"You know for the first time I regret instilling the will of fire so deeply within her psyche if that is what's going to happen every single time"_ the First Hokage pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration.

As his unlikely companion nodded silently in agreement, a couple hours later they returned and found the two girls knocked out wrapped up in each others arms beneath the blankets, package sitting on the bedside table and still unopened.

When the two friends woke it was almost lunch time so they headed to the tea shop and that's where they met the Sand Siblings "Sakura, Karin we've been looking for you all morning" Gaara stood abruptly nearly knocking the table over in his haste to greet his friends.

His two siblings shook their heads in amusement having come a long way since a week before hand "Indeed, we wanted to apologize properly, if we hadn't joined up with Orochimaru you're h…well you're village would be alright" Temari bowed her head.

Oh so subtly avoiding the subject of the Leaf Village's major loss their Hokage at the shaking of the slightly shorter girls head "Have you been crying Haruno" Kankuro got a good look at the taller girl and noticed the bags and tear tracks.

Gaara frowned deeply "Oh well Lord Hokage's death just hit me harder than I thought it would, but I'll be okay now, he fought bravely and in the end dealt a heavy blow to Orochimaru" Sakura smiled brightly over her sudden bought of crying.

Not another tear would fall from her eyes so long as she could help "Plus he gave her something and if you don't want me there Sakura-chan when you open it all you have to do is tell me to go away" Karin grinned.

" _Look at that Hashirama our little Sakura-chan is strong after all you know"_ Kushina smiled pride shining within the depths of her violet eyes as she stared at Sakura with adoration and maternal love for the daughter that wasn't hers, but could have been.

Her companion as a spirit nodded _"We can never give up on her Kushina and likewise I know she'll never give up on us, we all three of us depend on each other to make it through this life no matter what may happen"_ Hashirama stated wisely.

Temari tilted her head to the side watching the two girls closely "So you two are always together, are you dating or something" the teal eyed blonde prodded suddenly and Sakura who'd just taken a sip of her tea choked.

Karin's hand shot out glowing green and the coughing subsided as the liquid in Sakura's lungs were expelled forcefully "No, we're just friends, Sakura-chan and I go way back since we were eight, and she nearly died once for me, I would do the same in a heartbeat" the red head exclaimed.

Sakura smiled fondly "Plus it's a given that I make sure nothing happens to Karin-chan since she's that knucklehead Naruto's only living relative distantly sure but family all the same" the pinkette announced in a determined tone.

"Just what is it with you and cherishing family, as I understand it you don't have siblings yourself and only have you're mother and father" Baki, the Sand siblings sensei showed up at their booth suddenly, raven brow raised.

Signaling he wanted his question answered "Yeah and that was some scolding you gave us, it really felt as if the world had been ripped out beneath our feet" the brunette next to his sister whistled remembering that scolding.

"And that you fell asleep could you tell us what exactly happened before you arrived" the pale green eyed red head prodded lightly unsure if it was a sensitive topic, like the subject of the Hokage obviously was to his friend.

Emerald eyes blinked slowly at the amount of things being said and tried to process through them, her brain was tired so it was difficult "Haruno-san are you alright" the Sand Jonin inquired gently not wanting to pressure her.

It gave her the needed push to get through "I've had the will of fire instilled inside of me, it's where one see's the entire village as family, it's a Leaf thing, but I was taught one didn't have to be blood related to be family or be considered a sibling" the pink haired kunoichi explained.

"For you're other question you remember that Sound Genin, Dosu, he threw himself in front of a sword and died protecting Sakura-chan" the Uzumaki girl offered an answer for the second question and it was clear they were all shocked at the news.

Because none of them had even heard about Dosu's death _"Everything will be alright Sakura-chan just hang in there alright"_ the Uzumaki woman squeezed the young girls shoulders gently with a fond smile.

" _Precisely and once you get through this rough patch there isn't anything that you won't be able to overcome"_ the First Hokage predicted taking his turn to squeeze the girls shoulders pride for her shining within his onyx depths.

The girl in question blew out a breath "Bet the snake was pretty pissed off about that having one of his experiments turn traitor and help the village that he was attacking" the eldest of the Sand siblings the only girl snickered suddenly.

Bringing a smirk to her sensei's lips "Quite and I truly thank you for all you've done for us Haruno-san, so if you ever get the urge to travel the Hidden Sand Village would welcome you with open arms" he said what he came there to say before vanishing in a swirl of sand.

"And we'd be happy to have you come visit anytime Sakura, though things are sure to be chaotic when we return at first" the youngest of the sand siblings commented before smiling sheepishly just glad that he was able to express himself, his true self without fear of consequences.

Kankuro chuckled "Lucky you and I'm sure you'll like the Sand Village just make sure you bring those idiots you call teammates" the middle child of the sand siblings snorted as they all finished off their lunch and they were just preparing to leave.

When someone appeared at their booth table once more "Sakura Haruno you are to come with me, the Elders wish to speak with you" a member of the anbu black ops stated in the same tone that most members used when things were serious.

Emerald eyes widened in shock and surprise and she very nearly panicked because she couldn't even begin to imagine what the elders wanted with her until gentle hands were pressed to her shoulder "See you at home then Sakura-chan" Karin pouted.

As the Anbu took her friend away all the way to the Hokage Tower where the Elders were waiting "There she is thank you Tenzo" Koharu spotted them when they'd appeared in the meeting room, and stood to approach.

The poor thing looked nervous "You don't have any reason to fear Haruno Sakura-san, in fact this meeting is about you're promotion to Chunin, to which you will be immediately assigned a B Rank Mission" Homura waved the anbu off.

While walking towards the young girl and holding out a forest green Chunin Vest "P..Promotion but I hardly did anything at all" Sakura gaped taking the vest all the while feeling massively confused about what was going on.

" _That's not true Sakura-chan, you must have impressed the judges, plus you helped prevent a major catastrophe well a bigger one than what happened, anyway you should be asking about the mission instead of gaping you know"_ Kushina scolded gently, shocked herself at the turn of events.

Sakura stared at her chunin vest "Yes Haruno-san promotion, you are one of two that were promoted, Shikamaru Nara was as well and you're teammates thought it befitting you deserve the title of Chunin more" the elder female nodded.

"Ri..Right you said I was being assigned a mission immediately" the pinkette straightened looking more serious than ever and clutching the package with her chunin vest tightly in her arms determination flaring brightly within her jade eyes.

Homura nodded it was just as they'd figured, she was the second coming of Tsunade Senju "Exactly, you along with Jiraiya and Naruto will set out from the village to find Tsunade Senju and bring her back to the village to become the Fifth Hokage" the male elder stated.

Before Sakura couldn't even think about declining the mission not that she would _"Say yes Sakura-chan, say yes"_ Hashirama urged his little protege, the only student of his that lived, though he couldn't proudly show her off to else.

"I accept Homura-sama, Koharu-sama, I'll bring Lady Tsunade home if it's the last thing I do" the young pink haired kunoichi vowed taking the mission scroll held out to her before bowing low and exiting the room and subsequently the Hokage Tower.

Down in the streets she became her most impatient and simply body flickered home "Kami Sakura-chan did you have to scare the living daylights out of me" the ruby eyed red haired girl scowled with a sulk.

Until her eyes strayed to what her best friend was clutching in her arms "Holy crap Sakura-chan you're were promoted to Chunin that's awesome" the Uzumaki girl cheered hugging her friend tight proud of her friend.

No matter how rough that week had been on them some good things had come out of "Yeah and the Elders assigned me a B Rank Mission, so I'll be gone however long it takes to find Tsunade-sama" Sakura winced.

"That's okay Sakura-chan is anyone else going along with you, are you going to take that package, do you want me to tell anyone for you" Karin chattered a mile a minute as they hurried through the empty living room to Sakura's bedroom to pack.

Once donning her backpack and wearing her chunin vest with pride "Naruto and Jiraiya-sama, yes I'm taking the package and I probably won't see anyone else so you can tell whoever, see you later Karin-chan" the pinkette waved.

" luck Sakura-chan I believe in you and know you can complete this mission no matter what it takes" the red head called looking happier than she ever had in her entire life, she had a home, a family and awesome friends it was definitely the life.

Sakura blew out another breath, turned on her heel and hurried off down the streets to the gates "No wonder they made us wait what are you doing here kid" Jiraiya grumbled under his breath looking irritated.

Behind Sakura, Kushina rolled her violet eyes _"Geez Jiraiya-sama you've just turned into such a grump these days haven't you"_ the Uzumaki woman snorted, as much as she liked outside village missions, this one was no doubt going to be trying for her and everyone else.

"You're a Chunin now that's awesome you know" Naruto burst out in a round of excited chatter before his teammate could answer the question his godfather had asked her, even if he didn't know the man was his godfather in the least.

The girl giggled lightly "Since I was just promoted to Chunin, I'm coming along to help you find Lady Tsunade, I won't be to much of a bother Jiraiya-sama and I can reign Naruto in if he gets to be to much of a knucklehead" the pink haired kunoichi quipped dryly in amusement.

Finding it extremely hard not to burst out laughing when the female spirit attached to her was making silly faces behind Jiraiya's back _"Really you are the oddest woman I've ever met and my Mito-chan was definitely strange sometimes"_ the First Hokage shook his head with a chuckle.

Jiraiya groaned "Fine, fine I'm holding you to that promise girly, now lets go times a wasting and Tsunade won't stay in one place for very long" the white haired male turned on his heel after the lot of them had signed out and started down the path to the outpost town.

"So you're really a Chunin now huh Sakura-chan" the blonde walked close to his friend a little more subdued than usual, after all the recent happenings he was definitely more wary than he would normally be.

Sakura nodded quietly and inhaled the fresh air perhaps a hopefully normal mission was exactly what she needed to get past everything that had happened recently, Jiraiya peered over his shoulder an hour later at the two silent teens.

One thirteen now and the other still twelve unfortunately because of how late in the year his birthday was "Awfully quiet aren't you kids, I expected nonstop chatter really" the Toad Sage commented trying to get them talking.

They both blinked at him before breaking down in quiet laughter "We've been through a lot pervy sage so excuse us if we want to be quiet" the Uzumaki boy stuck his tongue out at his mentor and his mother stared at him with her jaw hanging open in astonishment and violet eyes wide.

Even the First Hokage looked shocked at the nickname that had slipped from the boys lips, while the only girl on the mission, not counting the spirit, pressed a hand over her mouth swearing to herself she wouldn't laugh, but it was just so bloody freaking hard not to.

None of them could have even guessed that as they were walking back in the Leaf Village their sensei was facing down two rogue shinobi and the fight ended poorly for him to which he was promptly signed in to the hospital.

But they wouldn't find that out until a little later _"Oh my sweet Naruto-kun you are something else you know"_ Kushina shook her head with a sigh, never did she think she would ever hear that ridiculous nickname come from her son of all people.

" _Though you have to admit Kushina it is an apt nickname for him"_ Hashirama chuckled eyeing his secret protege, who was trying not to break down in raucous laughter, but it was clearly very difficult as her shoulders shook.

And her face turned bright red with the struggle of holding her laughter in "Are you okay Sakura-chan" Naruto eyed his teammate warily thinking she had officially gone crazy, his mentor knew though what was wrong with the girl.

Because he groaned loudly and it broke the dam "N..Na..Naruto you knucklehead th..that's n..no way to ad..address on..one of the Leg…hahaha..Legendary Sannin y..you know" Sakura laughed so hard that tears were streaming down her cheeks from the hilariousness of the moment.

The Sannin in question couldn't help but warm up to the girl even if she was laughing at the nickname used but still trying to scold her teammate "You can try, but it's no use telling him that" Jiraiya grinned thinking that maybe this mission wouldn't be so bad.

With her tagging along and after several more minutes the laughter finally calmed down and silence settled over the three of them again as they continued walking to the outpost town unaware of the danger just looking a few miles behind them.

Until they finally reached the little town _"Sakura-chan ask what his plan is to find Tsunade anyway"_ the red haired woman floating along after the trio demanded suddenly as they searched around the little town and finally came upon an inn.

Sakura peered cautiously over her shoulder "Jiraiya-sama what exactly is you're plan to find Tsunade-sama" the pinkette inquired lightly waiting patiently as he checked them in to the inn, though it was a single room with three beds.

It was better than nothing she supposed _"The nerve of that man, you couldn't have you know gotten Sakura-chan her own separate room"_ the brunette ranted and raved not liking the situation his little secret protege had been put in.

Jiraiya turned at the question though and Sakura was glad the man couldn't hear the ranting and raving of Hashirama going on behind her "We'll start tomorrow and I'm gonna search around the bars and gambling hot spots for information" the white haired Sannin explained.

Then to her irritation a woman suddenly showed up and flirting with her eyes Jiraiya was gone "Geez I can't believe that pervy sage ditching us to be with a woman" the blonde grumped out as they headed up the stairs to their room.

Not more than twenty minutes later, Naruto was definitely getting antsy "You know I think I'm gonna go check up on pervy sage, keep the door locked, I'm going out the window" the Uzumaki boy stood upright and left the key on the bed before disappearing out the window.

Leaving Sakura and her two ghostly partners in crime to themselves _"Now would be a good time to open that package Hiruzen gave you Sakura-chan"_ the Uzumaki woman suggested when the girl her soul was attached to sat there in utter silence for a full minute and a half.

" _Right you're all alone and there's no one around that could badger you to find out what's in it"_ the First Hokage nodded in agreement, eyeing the window warily as the package was unsealed from the scroll and placed on the bed.

The girl took a deep breath then untied the twine holding it together before removing the plain brown wrapping paper, first thing that caught her eye was the envelope, but it was bypassed for the moment to pick up the dark cloth.

When unfolded became the most beautiful outfit ever "Hokage-sama I'll treasure this gift forever" the pink haired newly promoted kunoichi murmured quietly nabbing up the envelope to read the letter within, that basically told her to continue displaying such a strong will of fire.

And protect the future of Konohagakure she was honored and stood to seal away her new outfit in a scroll not wanting to wear it just yet, but changed her clothes to something a little more suitable for travel and was just tying the sash to her haori when a knock came.

Her lips pursed after tying her headband around her neck and headed for the door "Did you forget the key kn….." Sakura trailed off as she looked up into familiar sharingan eyes, her heart froze in literal terror as she realized who it was that was stood before her.

"I..Itachi Uchiha" she whispered the name but it felt like she'd shouted it from the top of her lungs as her skin paled and sweat beaded on her brow, there went her hopes for a normal mission and she could very well end up dying on that day.

Ebony brows rose in response "Ooh the girl knows who you are Itachi-kun, such an honor, how about me pinky do you know who I am" the very tall blue man flashed razor sharp teeth at the young girl standing in the doorway of the room they'd knocked on.

"K..Kisame Hos..Hoshigaki" came his name as well only thanks to Zabuza, who'd told her about the more dangerous rogue from mist, her gaze shifted to the bandaged wrapped sword, Sharkskin and Sakura promptly took several steps back.

Grabbing her tantou and holding it out in front of her defensively "You are unexpected, where is Naruto-kun" the Uchiha stepped forward just once then stopped, giving the room a cursory glance and look over, but not finding his target.

"No idea, but I wouldn't have let you take him anyway" the pinkette stated eyes narrowed on the duo before her, she knew why they were after Naruto without anyone having to tell her, that's why she was the only other person to have been promoted to Chunin.

They looked a little surprised "Very suspicious don't you think Itachi-kun, how is it you know why we're after that goofy blonde kid" Kisame narrowed his beetle black irises on the young girl in front of him.

"Indeed did Jiraiya tell you or are you trying to bluff and don't really know anything at all" Itachi took another step forward, Sakura saw what he was trying to do and made a dash for the window, she'd almost reached it.

When a hand shot out and clamped around her wrist in a vice grip that was slowly tightening as the seconds passed _"Sakura stay calm okay just don't panic alright"_ the violet eyed red haired woman cautioned keeping the girls gaze focused on her.

And the panic that had been rising to the surface was quickly suppressed _"Good girl Sakura-chan, good girl just hang in there, Jiraiya is on his way I can feel him"_ the brunette spirit soothed, manifesting at that moment was a bad idea.

Bloody red with three black tomoe met hardened emerald "I know it's because Naruto has the nine tails sealed inside of him" Sakura answered smoothly doing her best to remain calm as her heart slowed in her chest allowing her to think clearly for the moment.

Tendrils of Jiraiya's chakra reached out to her signaling he was still to far away but he would be there soon, she just had to be patient, she could do that "Smart little girly to, hmm did the Sannin tell you" the blue shark like man demanded entering the room and shutting the door.

Only to lock it now unless it was broken down the only way in or out was the window "Jiraiya-sama didn't have to tell me anything, I've known all along" the pinkette announced carefully eyeing her wrist that was still caught in a vice grip.

It was starting to hurt and she knew she was going to have bruises, but she didn't comment on it choosing to keep focused on the conversation at hand "Awfully calm aren't you" the rogue Uchiha bent to be more eye level with the young girl caught in his grasp.

Sakura's heart sped up in response as his breath washed over her and his voice deepened "A ninja must remain calm at all times no matter the situation" she recited from heart the only thing that came to mind at that moment.

" _Not much longer Sakura-chan, Jiraiya's almost here"_ the Uzumaki woman spoke again violet eyes flickering back and forth between Itachi, Sakura and Kisame, this was a bad, bad situation, why did everything bad happen to Sakura.

Hashirama clenched his hands into fists _"Oh that idiot boy, he couldn't choose a worse moment to come here than this one"_ the First Hokage groaned suddenly as the door knob started rattling followed by pounding.

"Open up Sakura, I know you're in there, Naruto that Dope is in danger my older brother is after him, he injured Kakashi" Sasuke's voice sounded from the other side and if she could Sakura would have whacked the boy over the back of the head.

The eighteen year old holding her in place chuckled under his breath in amusement "Foolish little brother, let him in Kisame so that he may see his warning has come to late" Itachi directed his gaze to his partner.

Who grinned widely and reached out to unlock the door "Welcome to the party, to bad you missed the start up" Kisame whistled as the door swung open to reveal a wide eyed Sasuke as he realized how dire the situation was.

His teammate gave him a tired look "You better not have touched her" the younger Uchiha sibling snarled preparing to lunge forward only to have a large bandage wrapped sword hold him in place, he didn't like the feel of that sword in the least.

"You wouldn't be able to stop me if I wanted to Sasuke-otouto and you'd only watch on helplessly unable to protect you're teammate" the elder Uchiha sibling smirked as his grip tightened painfully on her wrist as he pulled her closer.

Sakura grit her teeth trying to ground herself in place but even with her chakra enhanced strength she couldn't tear her arm free "Ah, ah, ah Kid one wrong move and Itachi kills her or I hack off a limb" the rogue from mist warned sensing that the brat who'd joined them was about to pull a stupid move.

Now thanks to her bloody unlucky streak, she was stood even closer to the kin killing Uchiha "No don't touch her Itachi" Sasuke shouted desperately not wanting anything to happen to the girl he considered a friend.

It was that desperation in his voice that sparked something deep within those emerald irises, determination flared to life "Co..Compromise then let Sasuke go and leave Naruto be for the time being and I'll let you do anything you want to me, excluding killing me" Sakura burst out.

Essentially sacrificing herself for her teammates "Tempting, tempting very well then, Naruto is safe for the time being and Sasuke you are free to leave the room" Itachi nodded in agreement to the compromise.

Sasuke was shoved from the room and the door was slammed in his face and locked "Brave little girly you'll regret offering yourself up to Itachi-kun" Kisame shook his head wondering how long it would take to break the girl.

Sakura raised her head eye jade eyes flashing with her determination "I'll regret nothing for them I would do anything even kill" the pinkette stated meeting the blood red eyes of Itachi evenly without so much as a single flinch.

"What a strange little girl you are, such fire and passion, I look forward to breaking you" the Uchiha murmured voice low and deep like silk as he bent even further in order to be at the proper height and leaned forward.

Lips barely brushing against hers as he spoke "You won't I'm much different than you can even begin to imagine and my will is iron clad unbreakable" the pink haired kunoichi glared defiantly at the Uchiha holding her captive.

He gave a throaty chuckle in response "Guess we'll see then won't we" Itachi breathed crushing his lips to hers with bruising force in the next second, his free hand shooting out to grip the girls other arm in a vice tight hold.

Before shoving them into a wall a gasp emitted from her mouth allowing him to delve deeper, his tongue came into play and Sakura was little more than a rag doll in his hold _"No, no, no this can't be happening"_ Kushina shouted in horror tugging on her long beautiful hair.

"Well what do we have here" a familiar voice only to the lone girl in the room sounded from behind them, Itachi stopped his assault and merely craned his neck to spy the man, with an irritated glance.

" _You know Sakura-chan I can't help but wonder if you aren't cursed to experience nothing but bad luck sometimes"_ Hashirama deadpanned as said girl was lowered to her feet though still held quite painfully by the wrist.

It was getting harder and harder not to say anything but she shifted her gaze to rest on the newcomer "Kan Kuki what the hell are you doing here" Sakura scowled furiously surprising the two rogues with her sudden anger.

As she tore her wrist free of Itachi's grasp "I was looking for Naruto and Karin, figured they would be together since you know their distant cousins" the man named Kan shrugged with a smirk on his lips.

Fury ignited within those jade depths "Whoa, whoa, whoa there pinky who the hell is this guy again" Kisame frowned not liking that someone else was after their target and a girl they had never even heard about.

"Kan Kuki from the Grass Village and you made the mistake of coming here where I could get my hands on you" the girl lunged tantou held out going for the kill she knew it was a ruse, so Kan was definitely surprised when she ducked low and struck out with her foot.

Landing a brutal kick to his side that sent him crashing through a couple of walls "Naruto Uzumaki is here to save the day Believe It" Naruto burst in through the window at the exact same moment, Kushina slapped her forehead in response while Hashirama groaned loudly.

"N…N..Naruto you knucklehead idiot why do I have brainless idiotic teammates it's just not fair" Sakura groaned herself letting out a long suffering sigh as she jerked the boy back by his orange shirt collar and shoved him behind her.

The boy gulped and laughed nervously, the only good thing about the situation now was that they were nearer to the window and could use it to escape should it get worse again before Jiraiya that damn lollygagging man arrived.

"Were you trying to kill me you little bitch" Kan emerged from the wall covered in debris holding his side face twisted with agony, Sakura nudged Naruto back a little more eyeing their escape route and Sasuke was just below waiting for them.

Sakura didn't feel guilty in the least when she nodded "Yes because you would have killed me to bad I missed with my tantou, Naruto out the window now, stick with Sasuke, find Jiraiya-sama and for kami sake don't be idiots" she stated in a cold tone of voice.

Before craning her neck while keeping one eye on her enemy and speaking to her teammate "Bu…" the blonde pouted as he realized there was no arguing with her so without wasting another second leaped down into the streets then both boys sped off to find what was taking Jiraiya so long.

"Do you really expect these rogues to help you Haruno, you won't get so lucky next time" the Grass Shinobi glared lowering his hand as the pain faded and he was able to stand properly, this time he wouldn't fail.

Emerald eyes flickered in Itachi and Kisame's directions "No, but they wouldn't interfere either and you are underestimating me Kan, I'm not an eight year old anymore" Sakura put a hand on her hip gathering all her courage for one last hoorah.

"Pinky's right, this is you're fight and we aren't inclined to help either of you" the blue shark like man shrugged getting comfortable on the bed likewise his partner did the same, apparently they weren't going to leave either.

Kan grit his teeth and charged forward "Bitch I'll take you back to the Grass Village and you'll wish you were never born" he snarled furiously taking a swing at the young girl who spun to the right dodging his attack.

Then kicked out with her foot again trying to sweep him off his feet "Fat chance of that bastard there's a reason I graduated top of the class as the best rookie kunoichi and one of two to be promoted Chunin" she snapped.

Moving like flowing water as she ducked, dodged, leaped and weaved in and out of his attacks one by one then with perfect timing thrust her wrist forward that was covered in bruises and punched Kan straight out the window and down into the street below.

He didn't move for several minutes, and at the five minute mark slowly rose gingerly to his feet "Looks like I have the last laugh brat" Kan smirked eyeing his handy work pain registered in her brain at that exact moment.

And emerald eyes lowered to the sword embedded in her stomach and protruding from her back, blood dribbled down her chin "One lit..little sword isn't going to stop me" Sakura grasped the hilt of the sword stuck in her body.

Then with a deep breath yanked it out brutally left hand glowing green to heal the damage, it had missed her stomach by centimeters thank kami, Sakura exhaled slowly and drew back the sword intending on throwing it.

Only to have her wrist caught once more in a vice tight grip "Leave, the girl and I have unfinished business to attend to" Itachi ordered in a warning tone at the injured Grass Shinobi, he had no doubts in his mind that Sakura would have killed the man.

Kan limped away nursing a bruised ego no doubt "Shouldn't we you know be trying to get out of here ourselves, there's only so long that Jiraiya will fall to the whims of a woman before he grows bored" Kisame piped in still seated comfortably on one of the beds.

Itachi turned his sharingan eyes onto his partner then to the girl in his grasp "I have no doubt that Sakura here will warn the Sannin of our deal isn't that right Sakura" the Uchiha rumbled in a deep voice lips to her ear.

A shudder crawled down the girls spine in response "A deal is a deal" the pinkette grumbled sourly looking as if she'd eaten a lemon, the things she did for those two boys it was a wonder how she was even sane actually.

"Good girl" Itachi murmured capturing her chin with long wiry fingers eyeing the drying blood that has spilled from her lips, before leaning forward lithe pink muscle coming out and dragging along that short trail of blood.

To pale pink lips, her heart sped up in response as Itachi layered his lips over hers delving deep like earlier and one of his hands came up to tangle in her short pink locks, it was much different, calmer and Sakura wasn't sure how much more of this she would be able to take.

"Must be pretty good for you huh, Itachi-kun's always been like that he could get any girl he wants" the rogue from mist watching spoke up and Sakura jerked in response at the sudden noise, but she was held in place.

Finally after three long agonizing minutes Itachi pulled away "Guess that's our cue" the blue shark like man stood hefting Samehada onto his shoulder as Sakura was released and she slid to the ground breathing heavily.

Then a moment later the two rogues were gone just as Jiraiya busted down the locked door "The things I do for people" Sakura huffed looking very irritated that it had taken the man that long to even get there.

"Sasuke told me what you did Sakura, that was brave of you, are you alright they didn't hurt you did they" Jiraiya glanced around the destroyed room and gave the young girl a cursory once over before spying the dried blood on her clothes.

His onyx eyes narrowed in anger "I'm fine and those two had nothing to do with that, a Grass Shinobi came and he got lucky with his sword that's all" she sighed looking utterly exhausted not inclined to move from her spot in the least.

But stood anyway and hurriedly grabbed up her pack and Naruto's she didn't think they would be staying there for the night "I understand if you want to go home Sakura that must have been traumatizing for you" the white haired male frowned.

Not sure if it was wise to bring her along, her eyes flashed "No way I..I'm not giving up, I would put myself through anything and I refuse to fail a mission, N..Naruto's counting on me" Sakura shook her head unbreakable determination shining through.

"Okay, okay I understand but if you want to talk about what happened don't be afraid to ask and I'll help you through anything" the Toad Sage offered as they hurried down the steps, paid the bill and tipped extra for the damage done and headed out into the street.

Where the two boys in question that she would do anything for were stood waiting "Sakura-chan are you alright, did those bastards hurt you speak to me Sakura-chan" Naruto was quick to give his teammate a bone crushing hug at her appearance.

"I'm fine you knucklehead" her eyes softened in fondness as she returned the hug with a bone crushing embrace of her own, they always got through in the end no matter what came their way and she would be right there every time.

A few moments later the hugging duo separated "My brother seriously didn't hurt you did he" Sasuke was glaring at the ground when his sole female teammate faced him, why was it always her that bore the brunt of his mistakes.

"No Sasuke he didn't hurt me and you know what he could never break me either for you two and all our friends I would face down death a thousand times over you know" she grinned, reaching out to give him a hug as well.

Sasuke was hesitant but in the end he returned the first hug he'd received from Sakura "You go on home boy take care of your sensei and no more running off recklessly you hear" Jiraiya shooed the preteen boy off.

It was clear he was reluctant "Go on you brainless dork, we'll be back before you know it with Tsunade-sama" the pinkette waved him off, Sasuke turned on his heel and vanished down the street, she blew out a breath.

Unaware to the trio the two rogues had stuck around to watch the ensuing interactions and so when Jiraiya, Sakura and Naruto set forth from the outpost town, Itachi and Kisame followed them "Why are we following them again" Kisame groaned.

Onyx eyes shot his way "Because Leader-sama told us Orochimaru was snooping around for the woman their after and this is the best chance we have to take that snake out" Itachi explained simply in a bored tone.

Plus he was interested, he hadn't been kind and he definitely could have roughed the girl up a little more according to their deal, but she was still acting the same as she did before it was definitely strange and he wanted to find out what was so different about her.

Miles later the three Leaf Shinobi came to a stop and set up camp and later that night as she crawled into her bedroll Sakura was glad for the break and silence or well it was silent until her two ghostly partners in crime started speaking.

" _Are you sure you're really okay Sakura-chan not even you can come out of something like that without some kind of trauma"_ Kushina inquired gently worry in her violet irises, by the kami if anything was wrong she would go insane on Itachi Uchiha.

Spirit or not he would rue the day he messed with the girl she considered a daughter _"I am only sorry we didn't try to help you, otherwise that would have never happened"_ Hashirama lowered his head in shame.

Emerald eyes shifted in their direction and she rolled over, while taking a cautious look around "Thinking positive helps and truthfully it could have been a lot worse, anyway I'm gonna get some sleep so goodnight Kushina-chan, Hashirama-sama" Sakura murmured quietly.

Threw the blanket over her body after checking on her knucklehead teammate, scanned the darkness all around them suspiciously not entirely sure someone hadn't followed them, before allowing her eyes to close so that she could get some shut eye for the rest of the night.


	14. New Mission: Find Tsunade Senju Part 2

The next morning Jiraiya and Sakura got a very rude awakening "Ants, ants in my bedroll" Naruto shrieked jumping up and down trying to get rid of the tiny insects crawling on him, missing the irritated glare being cast his way.

Until a large blast of water hit him and he was soaked through "Naruto Uzumaki it is five in the bloody fucking morning, ants are going to get in you're bedroll no matter what you do and next time you wake us up at the crack of dawn I'll throw you in a river" Sakura growled.

Naruto's skin paled and he quietly sat down without another word or even a complaint to the watching rogue's amusement "Well that was interesting" Jiraiya sat up looking seriously amused as the girl threw her covers over her head for the next twenty minutes.

Before letting out a long suffering sigh and shoved herself out of her bedroll to stomp off and take care of business _"Someone's a little cranky this morning"_ Kushina snickered lightly trailing behind Sakura at a distance to avoid irritating the girl further quite yet.

" _Indeed after yesterday and all of last week she's barely gotten much sleep"_ Hashirama nodded wisely though amusement shined through in his onyx eyes before he hastily turned and floated back towards camp.

When Sakura returned there were six fish on a wire slung over her shoulder, gutted, scaled and with as many bones removed as she could remove, over her other shoulder was a stick that carried two pails, one of water, the other full of berries and herbs for breakfast.

She sat down with a huff ground up the herbs slathered the green paste on the fish started up the fire again and set their breakfast over the fire to roast "Eh Sakura-chan you're scary this morning" the blonde commented keeping a careful distance from his friend.

Jade eyes flashed in his direction "You aren't you know on you're well you know" the white haired male questioned carefully not wanting to offend the girl or piss her off even more if she was and hadn't thought to bring any supplies.

Her expression soured "No just exhausted that's all I haven't gotten much sleep during the last week and I would have liked to sleep in for once" the pinkette mumbled tiredly answering Jiraiya in a nice polite tone of voice.

Kushina smiled and pressed her hands gently to Sakura's shoulders _"Everything will turn out in the end Sakura-chan just be patient you know"_ the violet eyed red haired woman assured and the tension drained out of the girl slowly.

Allowing her to relax and her companions to breathe easier _"Correct, by the way breakfast is ready and you should to regain some energy and chakra"_ the brunette spirit warned and with that the three Leaf Shinobi dug in to their breakfast of fish and berries.

Drank their water, packed up camp and set forth to the next town with two silent tag-a-longs "She was like a fire breathing dragon this morning, you think what you did is actually really bothering her" Kisame questioned making sure to keep his chakra suppressed.

"Perhaps Kisame, but she's very good at hiding her worries and troubles" Itachi said onyx irises focused ahead of them on the trio of Leaf Shinobi, more specifically the lone girl that traveled with the two males.

Two hours later when it was nearing eight in the morning chakra flared to life behind "What the devil is Zabuza doing here" the blue shark like man scowled thinking the man had caught wind of them and was coming to speak with them.

But to his surprise the rogue didn't so much as glance in their hidden direction and sped straight after the group of Leaf Shinobi "Another rogue from mist huh" the Uchiha frowned lightly concerned that their target was being targeted.

Sakura paused feeling that chakra coming straight at them, prompting Jiraiya and Naruto to do the same and then he was there stood before them "Damn brat making Haku worry, the little Uchiha punk went blabbing about what happened and I happened to overhear" Zabuza grumbled.

Reaching forward to smack the girl on the forehead "What is it with you and rogues girl are you like a bloody magnet for them or something" the raven haired male snapped irritated because Haku was worried and he was worried.

Every time he bloody turned around something happened to the brat, Sakura blinked at him before her eyes darkened with irritation "Ugh that damn Sasuke, I'm gonna beat him to a pulp when we get home, for the last time I am fine" the pink haired Chunin stressed.

Tugging gently on her short pink locks "Are you really brat or bottling up everything you're feeling like you're known to do" the rogue from Mist crossed his arms and glared down at her with harsh brown eyes.

"Yeah, yeah and that's not good for you're health you know" the Uzumaki boy piped in off to the side of her and she gave him a sour look as she mimicked the man in front of her and crossed her arms over her chest trying to think of something to say.

Jiraiya eyed the newcomer a little warily but if the two brats weren't worried he figured the man wasn't there to harm just worried "Like I said if you're having troubles you can also talk to me" the Toad Sage offered again.

While the two eavesdroppers leaned forward to listen "You think she's gonna spill everything Itachi-kun" the blue haired rogue grinned eagerly waiting for whatever was going to be said by the young girl.

Itachi narrowed his eyes searching her expression carefully "She has a good poker face it's strange just makes me wonder who she was raised by that not much could faze her, she didn't even panic yesterday during the confrontation" the raven haired eighteen year old pointed out.

Kushina and Hashirama shared a look _"It's okay Sakura-chan you don't have to be brave right now, you can cry if you want, no one here will blame you"_ the Uzumaki woman offered gently knowing exactly how fragile the girl was.

" _Precisely it's better to let you're feelings out now so that they won't interfere with you're mission you need a clear head and a clear heart to face Tsuna-chan after all"_ the First Hokage stated wisely the girl bit her lip harshly.

Before finally a crack formed in her stoic expression one of utter heartbreak "I..I just want to protect them, Naruto, Sasuke, Karin-chan, everyone if I'd been quicker things would have played out differently" Sakura finally admitted.

"Wait a second you're still on about what happened last week aren't you brat what with Orochimaru attacking the village and killing the Third Hokage and that Sound brat dying for you" Zabuza couldn't believe his ears.

Sakura nodded quietly glaring at the ground with a sulk on her lips "You're something else Sakura-chan, you know I didn't know you cared so much about old man Hokage" Naruto wrapped an arm around his teammates shoulders giving her a careful side hug.

He didn't want to get punched clear to Sand "That's what you're upset about, why are you going around crying about a Sound Shinobi, their the enemy kid, don't tell me you had feelings for this guy and feel as if you betrayed him by what happened yesterday" Jiraiya gaped in disbelief.

At the accusation Sakura spun _"Don't pummel Naruto-kun's godfather Sakura-chan"_ Kushina panicked and took over the girls body to hold her back and lowered the girls arm effectively dodging the bullet as her temper was reigned in.

" _Buffoon he of all people should know"_ Hashirama snorted with a shake of his head as Sakura took a couple steps back trying to calm down to speak respectfully to the sannin without punching his head clean off his body.

When she'd managed it "No I didn't have feelings for him or anything, but if it weren't for that supposed enemy I'd probably be dead right now, I can be pretty clumsy sometimes and I fell, he took a sword for me just came out of no where really" the pinkette explained.

A short distance away and suppressing their chakra "Interesting and yet the brat still hasn't cried now I'm curious Itachi-kun, she doesn't act like a newly promoted chunin in the least" Kisame scratched his chin in thought eyes narrowed on the lone girl surrounded by three males.

Off to the side his partner nodded "Quite the next couple of weeks will prove most amusing and if we can catch her alone at some point we should take the chance to question her" Itachi suggested knowing it would happen, they just had to bide their time patiently.

Zabuza sighed "Got a question is that what was in the package you're former Hokage gave you brat" the raven haired rogue spoke up suddenly eyeing the girl's new outfit, having known about the package thanks to Kakashi.

Coincidentally Jiraiya noticed suddenly as well and his onyx eyes widened "Kushina" the white haired male whispered before shaking his head, Sakura forced herself not to tense or even react to the utterance of that familiar name.

And kept up a good neutral expression "You know Kakashi-sensei said that name once before to, who is this Kushina person" the blonde in the clearing piped in wanting to know, but like usual no one would tell him anything.

Sakura though looked guilty for some reason since said person was still in control of her body _"Sorry my little knucklehead you can't know just yet the time isn't right"_ the violet eyed red haired woman apologized.

Violet eyes filled with guilt until Hashirama patted her on the arm _"I to wish it was the right time and that Sakura-chan could tell someone about us, but it is to dangerous probably always will be"_ the brunette ghost announced wisely.

"Just who is it their talking about Itachi-kun, I've never heard of this Kushina woman either" the blue haired rogue from mist turned his attention on his partner in hopes to get an answer, Itachi was silent for a few minutes.

Before finally answering "Kushina Uzumaki, Naruto's mother and the former Jinchuuriki of the Nine Tails" the Uchiha commented growing more and more suspicious as the time wore on and the conversation continued.

Jiraiya frowned deeply "The heck his Sarutobi-sensei doing giving you a gift like that for anyway" the Toad Sage grumbled getting tired of standing around, they were wasting time that they could be using to search for Tsunade.

"My dream Jiraiya-sama and the will of fire that burns brightly within me, this was his way of asking me to continue protecting the future of the Leaf Village and the future of everyone in it and to continue displaying such a strong will of fire for the next generation" the pink haired Chunin stated.

Shocking the man into a stunned silence "Anyway brat I'm going to head back now see you whenever" the rogue from mist snorted ruffled the girls hair roughly then turned on his heel and vanished in the direction he'd come.

Naruto grinned "Onward to find this Tsunade lady" the Uzumaki boy burst out and with that they resumed their trek to the next town to begin their search for information on the whereabouts of Tsunade Senju.

"Can't believe that Zabuza of all people was actually tamed, I wonder what she did" the shark like man mused following after the trio with his partner at a set distance while keeping their chakra suppressed to avoid detection.

Itachi shrugged in response "No idea, one thing for sure is she's not a normal child, that sort of thing I would expect to hear from one of the Kage, not a little girl who's only just been promoted to Chunin" the raven haired rogue from Leaf frowned himself.

Meanwhile Kushina and Hashirama were chattering back and forth _"I think Sakura-chan should tell Naruto-kun about at least one of our presences so that if something strange happens in front of him he won't be to shocked"_ the Uzumaki woman whispered heatedly.

Hashirama considered their options _"Perhaps you're right Kushina, Sakura-chan when you get Naruto alone when we stop in that town up ahead pull him aside activate a soundproofing/barrier tag and tell him about me"_ the First Hokage relented.

Emerald irises shifted in his direction before the young teenage girl in question nodded imperceptibly with no one the wiser as they continued walking in their original direction to reach the second town on their search for Tsunade.

Not more than two hours later they were signing in to a hotel "Okay brat I promised to teach you a jutsu, this is called the rasengan, the first step you have to pop this water balloon with nothing but you're chakra and no you aren't allowed to help him Sakura" Jiraiya vanished after saying all that.

Her eye twitched "Sorry Naruto, good luck on you're training, I think I'm gonna help Jiraiya-sama gather information" then Sakura was gone in the next moment leaving the boy alone to try his hand at popping the water balloon.

" _We're gonna stay here Sakura-chan just in case those two didn't leave like we thought"_ Kushina announced unwilling to leave her son on his own especially with rogues from a dangerous organization looking around ready to snatch him away.

"Can't believe pervy sage and Sakura-chan they abandoned me" Naruto sniffled sulking like never before as he stared at the water balloon in his hand unsure of how to even begin to go about breaking it with just his chakra.

Kushina snickered at her son _"Poor boy though he is something else, my Mito-chan would like him"_ Hashirama quipped dryly in amusement as the girl their souls were attached to vanished around a corner out of sight.

Sakura blew out a breath glad to have a little alone time to herself, even if technically she should have told Naruto about being able to see the ghost of the First Hokage, she wanted time to sort through the mess that was her head.

And with that decision in mind headed straight for the local tea shop to order lunch, then vanished to a secluded area of the small town they were in "What's this Pinky all alone without protection such a pity guess those two didn't learn from yesterday" Kisame grinned.

Jumping down before the girl who didn't so much as flinch, having guessed that the two rogues had been following them "You don't have to worry we aren't after Naruto right now, we're more curious about you actually" Itachi appeared a moment later.

Her eyes narrowed in response "I'm not a host, I'm sure you would have been able to tell immediately yesterday if I was, so it's about my reactions and general attitude during the confrontation" the pinkette made an accurate guess as to what they were on about.

"Give the girl a reward Itachi-kun she's a smart one, which begs the question who raised you, what clan are you from that would make you so different that being in such a situation wouldn't faze you or make you panic like most little brats would Chunin or not" the shark like man clapped.

Applauding the girl and impressed if only in a grudging sort of way "Come to think of it you don't seem to surprised at our appearance either" the Uchiha sat down on the bench keeping a careful distance for the time being.

Sakura tilted her head in his direction "Not really, you're after Orochimaru and we're bound to run into him it only makes sense he would seek out Tsunade-sama as well and I'm not from a clan, from a civilian background, I just grew up thinking differently than everyone else" she shrugged.

Ready to bolt if the situation got to out of hand for her tastes "Were you truly not frightened at being held captive and forced against your will" Itachi narrowed his eyes trying to make sense of the girl before him.

Jade eyes flashed towards him once more "It's not the first time I've been held captive by anyone, Kan from Grass kidnapped me as a child, Zabuza Momochi as well if I freaked out about every little thing that wouldn't make me a very dependable shinobi" Sakura stated.

Shifting her gaze forward ever so slightly _"Um Sakura-chan what the hell is going on"_ Kushina gaped as she and Hashirama came to check up on their protege, she'd suspected the two rogues had been following them, but hadn't thought the duo would be so quick to approach.

" _They are no doubt after Orochimaru and if we keep on we'll have a confrontation with that snake as well"_ Hashirama said wisely, having figured that much out, he didn't think they would do anything stupid to jeopardize their mission to take out the snake sannin.

Everyone in the secluded spot gave a start at the loud scream that echoed all around the town "Kami talk about making someone's ears bleed" Kisame grumbled rubbing his ears as the scream died down but Sakura stood on her feet.

Quickly grabbing up her things getting the feeling that scream meant trouble was on the way and just as she was preparing to flee a blast of wind swept her off her feet and she slammed into a tree "Ow that smarted just a tad" she slid down with a wince.

"I'll show you the true power of the Grass Village this time I brought back up" Kan reappeared having gotten healed in the last day and stood behind him were two others probably jonin level Sakura grit her teeth.

While Itachi and Kisame stood off to the side irritated that they hadn't gotten to ask as many questions as they wanted Sakura let out a long suffering "A little sore are you, you know what will happen if you come after Naruto or Karin" the pinkette cracked her knuckles in preparation.

This time there would be no holding back in the least "Oh but I'm not after Naruto or Karin this time Sakura Haruno you're medical skills will be a welcome reprieve to the injured Grass Shinobi and you'll serve that village until you're dying breath" Kan said cockily.

"All yours Pinky we aren't gonna help you" the blue haired male with razor sharp teeth sat down on an out of the way bench with his partner to watch the fight this time they wouldn't interfere and no doubt at least one of the Grass Shinobi would die that day.

Itachi wondered if she'd be able to do it though "Can you truly kill, you are a child" the Uchiha Heir commented mocking her in a way, her hand tightened into a fist, but she kept her glare focused on the three shinobi before her.

Before finally speaking "I can and I'll feel nothing for it" Sakura straightened shifting into the first stance inhaled, hardened her heart, exhaled and body flickered without a sound nor a wisp of smoke, the ground cracked beneath their feet.

And one of the Grass Shinobi lost his footing, his shoulder was punched and a loud ~crack~ sounded through the air as he went flying signaling that the bone had been shattered with a single chakra enhanced attack.

"Nothing will stand in my way when it comes to the people are important to me, even if it meant throwing my life away for them" this time a sword was within her grasp, Kan recognized it immediately and his onyx eyes narrowed with fury.

That was his sword the brat was wielding "Do you even know how to use that or are you bluffing" Kan snapped angrily before he finally noticed it, he looked around "What did you do, what the hell is that" he pointed at the blue barrier.

Her lips curved upwards in amusement "My barrier did you think I wouldn't come prepared, I'm not stupid I have the IQ of a high chunin and a shinobi must never let their guard down even on a mission that shouldn't be problematic or on break" the newly promoted chunin said smugly.

"Also it blocks any chakra from escaping I don't fancy causing a big ruckus, Futon: Flower Scattering Dance" Sakura spoke while speeding through a set of hand signs, setting the jutsu off before darting forward.

Thrusting the sword in her hand out while throwing in a punch or a kick here and there before she finally landed a solid hit on Kan as she ducked low, spun and when he was at just the right level slammed her head into forehead.

Knocking him back a few feet "I thought medic ninja weren't allowed to fight" one of the other Grass Shinobi with Kan shot forward intent on taking the girl down while she was seemingly injured and wasn't focusing properly.

Her mistake as a sandal encased foot shot out and kicked her in the stomach "Regardless of the rules I don't intend on becoming the Grass Village's servant and if that calls for fighting then I will fight until I die" the rose haired girl said.

Flashing through another set of hand signs this time water and a wall of water rose up to protect her from the shuriken and kunai that were thrown at her from her third opponent when the jutsu died down the girl was no where in sight.

And then suddenly the older kunoichi found herself pulled underground until only her head remained above ground and a fist slammed into the back of her skull knocking her out now there were only two opponents left.

"I was told you only had two chakra natures, but you clearly used a wind jutsu earlier" Kan snapped furiously not having realized how much fight the brat he wanted to present to his leader could actually put up now that she wasn't an eight year old.

Sakura paused "Oh that I learned and mastered Wind Nature chakra in a single month, actually no not even a full two weeks before I got the hang of wind nature and not even two weeks before I mastered various wind jutsu's to use in my fight during the final round" the pinkette smirked.

Kan glared at her furiously "Y..You really are a Pink Haired Demon, I don't care anymore I was having them take it easy on you, kill her now no more being nice" he ordered the only other Grass Shinobi there.

" _Turn Sakura-chan turn thrust a fist out and a foot out their going for a pincer attack"_ the Uzumaki woman attached to her ordered, Sakura twisted swinging the hand with the sword out and raised her foot.

Both men went flying in opposite directions, only one had a sword embedded in his chest where his heart lay "Ironic isn't that you're own sword is the weapon that is used for the killing blow on you're comrades" Sakura eyed the Grass Shinobi warily.

While making sure to keep a careful distance away from the now dead one just as it exploded a wall of earth rose to keep from being splattered with blood and body parts and the sword came sailing over the top of it to be caught once more in enemy hands.

Now all that was left was the unconscious woman and Kan "Wa..Wait don't kill her" Kan realized what the girl was planning to do as she drew the sword back aiming it at the woman's neck it would be an instant death.

But at the shout she paused sword stayed from slaying the out for the count Grass Kunoichi _"No matter what he says Sakura-chan don't believe a word, he's going to try and guilt trip you, don't be gullible"_ the First Hokage warned.

And a stoic expression crossed her features "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't, how will you ever learn if I don't make an example out of you" the rose haired girl put a hand on her hip cold jade eyes narrowed on the man who starred in all of her nightmares as a child.

Kan scrambled for an excuse "Sh..She's pregnant and I promised her husband that she would return uninjured" he lied straight through his teeth hoping to appeal to the girls medical side unfortunately for him.

She saw the lie for what it was "Do you take me for an idiot, if she was pregnant I would have felt the underdeveloped chakra in her womb the moment she was within range of me" Sakura stated in a flat unimpressed tone.

Was that really the best he could come up with on the spot "She has little ones counting on her to come home from this fight alive" Kan lied once more trying to guilt trip the girl in hopes of manipulating her into coming with him.

Her tongue clicked in disappointment "One lie after another with you people, all you are doing is feeding the flames that give me the strength to fight for my village and to survive no matter what it takes" her eye twitched in irritation.

This pissed him off and the worse possible thing to come out of his mouth came "Why you little ugly big forehead freak" the Grass Chunin snapped before he could stop himself, her expression darkened and killing intent filled the air.

Practically suffocating him "I like my forehead you know" Sakura snarled acting without thinking of the possible consequences and body flickered behind Kan to kick him straight in the back, he went flying forward.

And his head collided with a tree knocking him unconscious or so it appeared until both remaining Grass Shinobi disappeared in matching plumes of smoke "Not worth it" she shook her head eyeing the mess that had been created.

Then let out a long suffering sigh as she sped through the hand signs to release the genjutsu, brought her hands up and punched Kan straight in the chin, he fell backwards wearing a pained expression "Like I said high chunin, a jonin level genjutsu won't work on me" Sakura lifted a brow.

Kan realized he was outmatched, grabbed his unconscious partner and ran for the hills as the barrier was lowered twenty minutes was her limit to keep it raised apparently, Sakura blew out a breath and rubbed her forehead.

Clothes ruffled, a few splatters of blood across her cheek, but without injury, she intended on leaving right then and there but when she took a step forward the air shifted behind her and Sakura reacted on instinct and threw out a punch.

Only to have her wrist caught in a vice tight grip again by Itachi "Good reflexes and evasion skills, elemental jutsu's, fuinjutsu, chakra enhanced strength and medical skills, you're like the second coming of Tsunade Senju" Itachi spoke.

"Ah well I still have a long ways to go before I ever reach Tsunade-sama's level, would you let go I think I have enough bruises from you already" the pinkette deadpanned not complaining just really pointing out the obvious.

Itachi released his grip and her hand dropped to her side while his partner let out raucous laughter "You really are something else Pinky, how would you like to join Akatsuki, we could use someone like you with a lot of talent" Kisame offered.

Sakura blinked at him in shock "No thanks besides only unless I'm ordered I would never betray my village and even then I wouldn't be able to hurt those that I care for" Sakura took a couple steps back.

Her clumsiness came into play at that exact moment as the ground was slick due to her earlier water jutsu and she fell flat on her back with a loud jarring thud _"You're to much sometimes Sakura-chan you know"_ Kushina sighed.

" _Honestly Sakura-chan what on earth are we ever going to do with you"_ Hashirama rubbed his forehead getting a headache as Itachi bent to one knee before Sakura mirth in his ebony irises as he held out a hand

Not sure what he was playing at but knowing to try and get up by herself would only make things worse Sakura took his hand grudgingly and was tugged onto her feet in one smooth move, her hand was released to her surprise.

Then the two rogues were gone, Sakura rubbed her temples and healed the pounding in her skull as she turned and hurried off, two hours later after asking around in hopes to put her information gathering skills to use, she returned to the hotel with dinner for her, Naruto and Jiraiya.

"Where have you been all day Sakura-chan and pervy sage never came back either" Naruto waved his arms looking the most put out she'd ever seen him, Sakura knew she could never tell him the truth of what happened.

"Before you ask I tried on some mud, you know how clumsy I can be sometimes, cut my knee right open I tell ya" Sakura smiled brightly lying through her teeth, it was for his own safety after all as she handed over the ramen she'd found at one of the stands.

Naruto's shoulders slumped in response "Gotta be more careful Sakura-chan you're clumsiness will be your downfall during a fight one of these days" the blonde sighed knowing it would do no good even if he told her.

Sakura shrugged "Eat Naruto, then we'll go to bed perhaps Jiraiya-sama will come back sometime during the night" the pinkette gestured at their food and they both dug in before taking showers, crawled into the futon and fell asleep after setting traps to protect them during the night.

Like Sakura guessed Jiraiya did sneak into the room late and he was surprised to find the heated food storage scroll on his futon that he ate so he didn't feel guilty before going to sleep, next thing he knew it was morning.

"M'ning kids so how's that training coming along Naruto" Jiraiya was the last to wake like he had been the last to go to sleep and noticed his two companions awake and eating breakfast, once again there was some for him and he joined them in eating.

Immediately at the question his little apprentice/godson started scowling "I can't get it I have no idea what I'm even supposed to be doing, can't Sakura-chan help me pervy sage, she understands jutsu's better than I do" Naruto pleaded with the Sannin.

Giving him the patented puppy dog eyes "No, she'll be to busy learning fire nature, Kakashi told me that Sarutobi-sensei's youngest son Asuma taught you wind nature and if you're both gonna tag along with me helping you'll both learn something" the white haired male snorted.

The girl looked as if her birthday had come a whole year early because those emerald irises lit up as if a thousand fire works had gone off in them _"He's being awfully generous this morning, wonder if it has anything to do with leaving food for him last night"_ Kushina snickered.

" _Probably but at least she'll have another nature to command and no one but Naruto and that buffoon will be the wiser to it unless Sakura-chan uses it"_ Hashirama saw the merit in learning another elemental nature.

And so did his secret protege, it really was a shame he couldn't show her off to everyone "Thank you Jiraiya-sama and I promise that I'll practice very hard" Sakura vowed once she'd finished off her breakfast and they were preparing to head out.

Jiraiya chuckled and gently ruffled her hair "Good cause it's not going to be easy and the only hint I'll give you is that you must be able to use the heat in the air to create a flame, it's like taking in nature energy only more difficult, use a leaf before you get the hang of it" the Toad Sage warned.

Turning down a separate path leaving the two young ones behind "Damn pervy sage..hey Sakura-chan could you at least give me a hint on what I'm doing wrong" the blue eyed blonde pouted up at his best friend with a hopeful look in his to blue eyes.

Her face twitched _"Come on one little hint wouldn't hurt Sakura-chan besides it's not as if you're telling him how the jutsu works, just telling him what he's doing wrong"_ the brunette ghost gave up the fight and relented to the pouting.

Kushina grinned from ear to ear _"One thing about Uzumaki's is that they are relentless when they want something"_ the violet eyed ghost laughed her amusement of the situation as Sakura gave in to her friends pouting as well.

"Alright you knucklehead lets see it the first step of you're rasengan jutsu" the pinkette sighed unable to ignore his plea for help, she blamed Kushina, Naruto bounced in place before pulling out the water balloon and held it in his hand.

Jade eyes watched intently as he performed the first step "Huh the water is only spinning in one direction, not spiking out like Jiraiya-sama's did, try finding a way to get it to spike out in all directions that's the only hint I'm giving you later" then Sakura was gone.

Well at least she'd helped him if only just a little and the hint had been confusing so Naruto set forth to explore around the town while Sakura headed for the little secluded area to find their secret tag a longs there just as she'd expected.

So long as they weren't going after Naruto it was easy to ignore their presence "Pinky whatcha doing there" Kisame piped in when she sat down beneath a tree and not on the bench like he thought the girl would.

"Jiraiya-sama told me that if I was going to tag along with him that I was going to learn something from him so he told me to learn fire nature" the pink haired kunoichi admitted leaf in the palm of her hand and focused.

Next to Kisame, current onyx irises narrowed "You still have those bruises, I thought you would have healed them by name" Itachi commented seeing the green/purple bruises around the girl's wrist, her concentration broken.

She shot a look in his direction "Well yeah though bruises like these are hard to heal and my medical ninjutsu can't heal all of it in one go" Sakura stated in a light tone eyeing the bruises for herself it wouldn't be the last time she got bruised she was sure of it.

When no more questions were forthcoming Sakura set all of her concentration on taking in the heat of her chakra to create a flame and learn fire nature chakra "Do you even know what you're doing Pinky" the shark like man asked an hour later when nothing happened.

This time she was to deep in concentration to answer "Leave her be Kisame, we should get into the tree, someone will be here soon" the Uchiha Heir ordered as they suppressed their chakra and hid in the tree's.

It wasn't more than ten minutes later "Kid, kid snap out of it we have a problem that little idiot over did things and used up to much chakra, he's got a pretty bad fever" Jiraiya skidded to a halt before Sakura.

"Oh that knucklehead" the pinkette groaned following after the Sannin back to the hotel where Naruto did indeed have a fever and was knocked out, her shoulders slumped as she sat at his side and ground up a bunch of herbs.

Feverfew to be exact, boiled some water with the fever breaking herb then set about waking her teammate up "Naruto I need you to wake up now okay, this is going to be bitter but I need you to drink all of it for me" Sakura hummed softly.

And once he was awake crushed a chakra restoration pill up and mixed it with the herbal tea that she'd made "So..Sorry Sakura-chan I'..I'm always causing you trouble" Naruto looked upset, why couldn't he do anything right.

Her eyes softened in response _"We're going to go back to the Leaf Village to check on things"_ his mother exclaimed suddenly it was difficult watching the duo interact sometimes and then the spirit of Kushina was gone in the next moment.

Hashirama could understand how the woman felt never getting to know her own son _"Just try to stay out of trouble until we do return it will probably be a couple of days"_ the brown haired ghost said then he to vanished.

Sakura blew out a breath "It's okay knucklehead I'll be here always to pick you back up, now lets see you're hands" she ordered gently, his hands had chakra burns from overexerting his chakra and Naruto held them out for her to heal.

"Admit it Sakura-chan you secretly hate my guts for putting you through all the crap I have over the last several years we've been friends" he looked horribly, horribly upset and he was unable to meet the girls gaze.

The green glow around her hands faded and anger became palpable in the air and then suddenly Naruto had no choice but to meet Sakura's furious jade eyes "I..If you ever say that again I will pummel you into the ground" the newly promoted Sakura spat.

He gulped realizing he was being held up by brute strength, then he was dropped on his butt and Sakura stormed from the room, practically slamming the door behind her "Me and my bigmouth" Naruto groaned feeling like an absolute jerk.

Meanwhile Sakura stomped her way down the stairs and out into the streets of the little town they were in and headed in the opposite direction she'd gone that morning further into the center of town trying to cool off.

Feeling very hurt was that how he really thought that she secretly hated him her hands tightened into fists at her sides and tears sprung into her emerald eyes it was a struggle trying to reign them in and suppress her tears.

But one by one they spilled over and trickled down her cheeks to drip to the earth in a never ending torrent, in the end it got so difficult to even see where she was going that she stopped in the local tea house and sat in a booth by herself without ordering anything at the back of the restaurant.

All the while tears continued to fall not even paying attention to her surroundings "So it seems the last couple of days have finally caught up with you, I knew it would happen you just don't have it in you to truly be heartless" Itachi and Kisame slid into the booth.

Minus their cloaks and headbands for the time being "Are those even real tears or just crocodile tears to lure us into a false sense of security" Kisame snorted not wanting to admit it, but those tears really bothered him for some reason.

"My tears have nothing to do with what has happened the past couple of days" Sakura stated in a short tone, temper and emotions frayed for the moment as she kept up a constant stream of tears and a bleary glare at the booth table top surface.

Itachi narrowed his eyes while Kisame's brows shot upwards in response "Then enlighten us, have you finally realized that it will be impossible to protect Naruto in the future when we do come for him again" the Uchiha pointed out bluntly.

"Yeah you bit of more than you can chew if we're being honest, though lucky for you our leader ordered Orochimaru's elimination top priority or we would have snatched blondie already" the blue skinned man snorted.

Sakura grit her teeth "The reason is stupid and neither of those guesses are right, it's just Naruto is an idiot and he likes to say completely unrealistic things sometimes when he's upset, that in turn upsets me that's all" the pinkette said.

Finally feeling her tears ebbing away as the discord in her heart settled and she was allowed to think clearly and dry her eyes properly to see around her, now was as good a time as any to put her information gathering skills to use since she was there in a tea shop where gossip gathered.

She couldn't allow herself to get attached to the rogues before her after all "That's it, just simply stating what had you upset gives you the strength to keep on as before" Itachi commented ordering an early lunch for himself.

Jade irises flickered towards him then the girl nodded "Why though most girls would be entirely to sensitive about such things and find it hard to forgive the one who upset them" Kisame took a sip of his early afternoon sake.

Then feeling a little vindictive because technically it was her fault they were stuck tailing the Leaf Shinobi switched out her tea with his sake cup, Itachi caught him though but didn't say anything "Because Naruto is like my little brother and it's impossible to stay mad at him" Sakura sighed.

Nudging her clay cup off to the side with a roll of her eyes and ordered another one that was quickly drained, then Sakura stood and left the restaurant heading back to the hotel after a pit stop to order some ramen she continued on her way.

He was still there staring at the wall and mumbling under his breath not noticing her return just yet "I'm the jerk of all jerks how could I say that to Sakura-chan" the blonde was clearly beating himself up over what he'd said.

And Sakura leaned against the door frame listening to him with a fond smile "You're right you are a jerk sometimes but you make it difficult to stay mad at you baka, here ramen" the pinkette held out the peace offering.

The boy swung around baby blue eyes wide and wary a couple minutes later he relaxed and took the ramen before digging in while she sat down to practice wielding a new nature for two long hours the lone girl in the room sat in complete and utter silence.

Until the leaf started burning around the edges "Are you trying to learn all five elements Sakura-chan" Naruto peered at the leaf curiously wondering if he'd be able to do that someday, but unwilling to try at that moment.

"Well that does sound like a good idea perhaps when we get back to Leaf and Kakashi-sensei is all better I could ask him to teach me lightning nature next" Sakura considered Naruto's words before finally nodding in agreement.

Not more than ten minutes later they were leaving the hotel to explore the small town and try to pick up on any tidbits of information on the whereabouts of their mission target, hours later they gave up got an early dinner and went back to the hotel to get some shut eye.

Sakura stuck like glue to Naruto the last four days they were there in the small town making it a whole week they'd been gone from the Leaf Village "I got some information so we'll be moving on and it's time for the second step of you're jutsu" Jiraiya showed up late on the fourth night.

To find his young companions awake for once but like he'd come to expect a scroll of food was sat on his futon waiting for him "About time Pervy Sage been waiting forever and Sakura-chan's almost burnt through an entire leaf" the blonde scowled.

In response to this Sakura bit down on her lip to keep from smiling in amusement "What can I say, near perfect chakra control helps a lot" the pinkette shrugged coolly though her lips twitched at the corners and her eyes betrayed her mirth.

Jiraiya shook his head with a quiet snort ate and then the three of them climbed into the futon to get some shut eye, the next morning they headed out after paying the rent and left the small town they were in with two rogues on their heels.

" _Did you ever tell Naruto-kun about being able to see Hashirama, Sakura-chan"_ Kushina asked suddenly shooting glares at the duo of rogues tailing them even though neither Itachi or Kisame could see or feel the heat of said glares.

Emerald eyes shifted in her direction then gave an imperceptible and unnoticeable to her walking companions shake of the head indicating that no she hadn't told Naruto in the least despite being given permission to.

" _Probably for the best I suppose, he is a blabbermouth sometimes and doesn't think about what he says, he'd blurt the secret out before he even realized it"_ Hashirama deadpanned earning a small smile from the teenage girl his soul was attached to for some unknown reason.

With that they continued walking in the direction of the new town that would bring them closer to their target hopefully, but for now the lot of them enjoyed the silence as it settled around them like a blanket and breathed in the fresh air, ready or not Tsunade here they came.


	15. New Mission: Find Tsunade Senju End

Not more than a few days later, Jiraiya, Naruto and Sakura reached another town "Alright let's find a hotel I'm ready to sleep in an actual bed, you two keep practicing if you have the energy for it" Jiraiya ordered.

The lot of them were exhausted from an unexpected bandit attack "Just no Jiraiya-sama we're tired to" Sakura snorted bags beneath her eyes from staying up the entire night and all of the day before all because of some bloody bandits.

"Sakura-chan is right Pervy Sage, though I didn't do much to help contribute to the fight I still fought a little bit and used up chakra" Naruto scowled no way was he gonna stay awake just to practice the second step of his new jutsu.

Jiraiya shrugged and they all found a hotel to sign in to, a room with three futons was shared between them and at exactly 9 in the morning all three Leaf Shinobi were knocked out snoozing the morning away.

" _And what's worse those two are still following them, I've got a bad feeling about this Hashirama that something is going to happen and we won't be able to help Sakura-chan at the time she'll most need us"_ Kushina frowned manifesting just a bit to run her fingers through short pink locks.

Her companion in the afterlife winced _"I think your right Kushina, things will get dire in the coming days and one of us might have to reveal ourselves, I refuse to let anything happen to Sakura-chan even if that meant ousting the secret"_ Hashirama nodded in agreement.

As they sat and watched the three sleeping shinobi until a little after 2, Jiraiya was the first to awake, he went out to acquire an extremely late lunch before returning to find his other walking companions awake as well and practicing.

The Sannin hung back to watch, keen obsidian irises watching as Sakura sat off to the side concentrating on the leaf in her hand, the edges of the leaf were slowly burning which proved that she definitely had what it took to learn.

Before shifting his gaze onto Naruto, who was stood hands held out and the rubber ball held between the palms, it wasn't more than ten minutes later that the rubber ball broke just a small hole and chakra leaked into the air.

The boy hadn't quite gotten the second step down "Got food it's ramen" the white haired male called out holding out the take out boxes of ramen, he'd learned that both of his companions had a penchant for the stuff which was really weird.

"Oh boy ramen thank you Pervy Sage I'm starving" the blonde pounced grabbing his box of two bowls and flask of water, then quickly passed over the remaining portion to Sakura, to where they both sat and hurriedly dug in.

Jiraiya blinked at the duo before shrugging and digging in to his own meal "So do you think we'll find Tsunade-sama here or….." the pinkette trailed off unsure but she just had this uncanny feeling that their mission target wasn't there and they were just wasting time.

Kushina grimaced _"Relax Sakura-chan take a breather for once enjoy the break or however long you get to enjoy this time until someone comes after you again"_ the violet eyed woman squeezed the young girl's shoulders gently.

While off to the side Hashirama nodded _"I feel inclined to agree with Kushina for once, find some hapless boy kiss him senseless Sakura-chan"_ the brunette spirit teased and it was quite amusing to watch the blush flare to life on her cheeks.

Naruto and Jiraiya paused in eating to stare at her weirdly "Doubtful we'll find her here, but we have to give the brat there time to catch up on the second step, while I go around trying to gather information to find her" the Toad Sage commented.

Ignoring the blush as he was unsure of the reasons it was there for "You don't have a fever do you Sakura-chan, I could make up that herbal tea you made for me, for you if that's the case" the only blonde Uzumaki in existence piped in looking excited to return the favor.

Sakura took a deep breath and shot an imperceptible glare at one of the ghosts that followed her "It's not a fever just remembering something that's all" the emerald eyed girl murmured willing the blush away and the redness to her cheeks faded in the next moment.

" _Better watch out Hashirama, if you were solid Sakura-chan would have hit you for that, anyway we're going to go scout around town for trouble, just stay out of trouble yourself"_ the woman who was in fact Naruto's mother waved floating through the wall.

Hashirama chuckled sheepishly _"We'll be back after awhile Sakura-chan if you go out be sure to stay out of trouble"_ the First Hokage repeated the same line as the other spirit with a light impish shrug before fading through the floor after his companion.

Leaving the three Leaf Shinobi on their own for the time being "Alright you kids I'm off to find information on Tsunade" Jiraiya popped up in the next moment before vanishing out the door, the two teammates shared an amused smile at the man's antics.

"Come on Naruto, let's go find somewhere we can train undisturbed" Sakura rose to her feet while simultaneously collecting the trash from their late lunches to be thrown away so it didn't litter the room they were staying in.

It didn't matter where she was her neat freak tendencies always came out when there was even just a tiny bit of trash littering the floor "Why are you so strange Sakura-chan" Naruto grabbed up his pack and followed his best friend out the door.

All the way down the stairs and out into the streets of the small town they were in, Sakura shrugged in response peering left and right curiously before closing her eyes and letting her feet lead her forward.

They got all of two steps before she rammed into someone "This is a familiar scene" Haku's familiar voice filled her ears and Sakura's emerald eyes snapped open to lock with the dark brown of the fifteen year old Haku, Zabuza's apprentice.

Her eyes displayed her disbelief/happiness at seeing him "What are you doing here Haku" the rose haired girl exclaimed unable to stop herself and threw her arms around his waist in a bone crushing hug that was only given to friends.

And he was a most important one to be precise "Just wanted to make sure you were doing alright, plus I was already in the area, Zabuza-sama and Tsunami-san wanted a little alone time to themselves so I thought I'd travel" the ebony haired teen commented.

"Who cares what he's doing here right Sakura-chan, you're welcome around us any time you know" the blue eyed blonde piped in probably just as ecstatic as his sole female teammate was by the teenagers appearance in the small town they were in.

Sakura nodded in agreement of the statement "Might I ask where you were going to go with you're eyes closed Sakura" Haku inquired politely as they started walking in a random direction on the search for a place to train without destroying the town.

There they went again her blasted cheeks turning redder than a cherry "I..I uh well I was just gonna let my feet lead me forward in hopes of coming across something interesting" Sakura cleared her throat with a sheepish smile.

Causing both males with her to share amused smiles "Only you Sakura-chan, but that does sound like fun maybe next time we could do that" Naruto suggested knowing that no doubt it would be interesting and something would come out of it.

She nodded lightly in response as they trekked onward until finally they came across the perfect area to train in that wouldn't do any damage to their surroundings "So what are we doing here" the doe eyed teen questioned.

"Ah that Pervy Sage a.k.a Jiraiya told us to train, he taught me a cool new jutsu and told Sakura-chan to learn how to wield fire nature chakra, by the way could you give me another hint please Sakura-chan" the blue eyed boy pouted at his teammate.

Who had a flash of Deja-vu "Fine, fine, Jiraiya-sama said that the second step was all about power, allow the chakra to build up within the rubber ball past limits you never even thought to push yourself past and the rubber ball should burst" the pink haired chunin sighed.

Then sat down to start on her own training, leaf nestled firmly in the palm of her hand and she focused all of her concentration on it, ten minutes later despite the various chatter going on around her, the edges of the leaf started smoking and burning going inward.

Until the rumbling of their stomachs got to be to much "I'll go get ramen" Naruto offered surprisingly and then was gone in the next moment leaving his two friends behind having gotten the feeling for an hour now that the older boy wanted to be alone with his female teammate.

So there was little surprise, though the two rogue's watching got a shocker when the newcomer turned sharply to the lone girl in the clearing "They touched you, kissed you Sakura, exactly what I did, how can you remain level headed like that" Haku frowned deeply.

Concentration broken now "Haku, I've long since gotten past my reservations of being kissed by guys, besides that was my own fault, call me a martyr I just didn't want Sasuke getting hurt even if he is an idiot and a jerk" Sakura rolled her jade orbs upwards.

Before flopping back leaf dropping to the ground there was little left of it and soon she'd move on to learning an actual fire jutsu "Just makes me wonder how many other guys have kissed her right Itachi-kun" Kisame spoke up from his hidden spot in the tree.

Next to him was his Akatsuki partner and probably the only person he could possibly consider an ally "Agreed perhaps the next time she is alone, we'll ask her" Itachi wouldn't admit it, but he was pretty concerned, he knew better though than to show weakness.

Haku bit the inside of his cheek harshly then threw caution to the wind "Forgive me for this I just can't stand other guys touching you" the ebony haired fifteen year old apologized ahead of time as he bent, arms coming up to wind around her much smaller frame.

And connected their lips together viridian orbs widened in shock "W..Wa..Wait a s..sec..second H..Haku" the pinkette tried to push the boy away though it wasn't in her to truly hurt him so there was none of her usual strength in the action.

Less than a second later Naruto returned realizing he didn't have enough money cause Jiraiya took all of his only to turn beet red in embarrassment as he realized what he'd just walked in on "G..Gah why do you always gotta do that in front of me" the blonde squeaked.

Turning and covering his eyes image burned into his retina's for all time "Sorry Naruto I didn't mean for you to walk in on that" Haku laughed lightly avoiding meeting the jade colored eyes of the lone girl in the clearly.

"Right, so what did you come back for Naruto" Sakura huffed frustrated why did that keep happening to her and not to someone else but unable to truly be angry as the boy scratched his whiskered cheek with a sheepish grin.

Before explaining his dilemma "Pervy Sage took most of my money and only left me with a little bit" the only blonde Uzumaki in existence said looking to his toes for fear of turning red in embarrassment again.

Sakura blinked then unbidden her lips twitched upwards in amusement and started giggling he really was such an adorable knucklehead and entirely to naive when it came to girl's "You clueless knucklehead" the rose haired girl smiled.

It really was impossible to stay mad at the boy or Haku or Sasuke, she sighed inwardly "Come on lets all get dinner together" the doe eyed boy suggested and after grabbing up their packs hurried back onto the main street of the small town they were in and got ramen.

Then returned to the hotel, Jiraiya was surprised when he got back late that night and found an extra sleeping on a bedroll underneath the lone window in the room, but kept silent, he wouldn't wake the kids, unsealed the food in the scroll left for him ate and went to sleep.

When they all woke the next morning the Sannin couldn't keep his questions to himself "Who is he exactly and what is he doing here" Jiraiya questioned seriously suspicion plain to see in his black irises.

All eyes turned to him "My apologies Master Jiraiya one of the Legendary Sannin, I am Haku, you encountered Zabuza recently, he is my Master and I've befriended Naruto and Sakura here" Haku introduced himself properly and spoke with absolute respect.

Jiraiya's brows rose high before returning to their original places "He was worried like Zabuza so he came to check up on us" Naruto answered the rest of the question munching on his breakfast of choice, which was more ramen.

Likewise his teammate and Haku were eating the same thing until the lone girl in the room stood "Shoot I forgot something in that clearing yesterday, I'll be back in a bit" Sakura vanished in the next moment making the males wonder what exactly it was she'd forgotten.

That was only part of the reason she'd left so quickly _"You should be careful Sakura-chan and not approach them you know"_ Kushina scowled not happy in the least, while inwardly cussing out the two rogues that were following them in hopes of taking down Orochimaru once and for all.

" _We can't let anyone know about them Kushina, call those two an ace that Orochimaru won't be expecting"_ Hashirama stated wisely seeing the pro's of having those two tailing them much like his little secrete protege probably already had.

Moments later she was skidding to a halt in the clearing a few miles outside the town, irritation in her emerald orbs "A..Are you trying to alert every shinobi within a hundred foot radius of this town including Jiraiya-sama of you're presence" she scowled.

"Pinky it wasn't us, we've just been sitting here quietly waiting for you lot to move out of that town" Kisame turned and rolled his eyes while holding out his samehada, he was definitely surprised though at the scolding.

Her brow creased and she spread out her senses "Actually Kisame that was me, though you surprised me at being able to feel the flare of my chakra, let alone recognizing it" Itachi chuckled and now they were once again alone with the girl.

A pink brow twitched in response and Sakura huffed under her breath before walking over to the tree she'd been sitting under the day before and grabbed up her forgotten item which was revealed to be her tantou.

She blew out a relieved breath and went to turn and head back to the town when she was suddenly pressed into the tree before her though to her surprise there was no vice like grip on her wrists this time but she definitely didn't like the position she was currently in.

"Tell us girly was Itachi-kun you're first kiss or that boy from yesterday" the blue skinned man spoke from off to the side of her, Sakura knew then that they'd seen and cursed herself for it, Haku chose the wrong place apparently.

Her hands clenched into fists "Yes tell us Sakura because you're reactions to every thing that have happened thus far are not normal" the ebony haired eighteen year old murmured, his hot breath caressing the shell of her ear.

Causing a shudder to roll down her spine _"This is my fault isn't it Hashirama, I just had push Sakura-chan that one time at Shino"_ the violet eyed spirit felt guilty like never before as she witnessed the scene before her.

" _No Sakura-chan's just unlucky sometimes, I don't think they'll hurt her for fear of being found out"_ the onyx eyed ghost groaned unable to watch in case that happened again, it always happened for some bloody reason.

Sakura grit her teeth "Never said I was normal now did I and neither, I tripped on the person who was my first kiss" the pinkette stated glaring harshly at the tree in front of her 'Tripped my ass, I was pushed' she snorted inwardly.

"Was it Itachi-kun's brother, you are rather clumsy and he's one of the people closest to you considering you were so desperate to spare him" Kisame rumbled out already laughing imagining the scene.

The mention of Sasuke and first kisses had her lips twitching as she tried to fight down her own laughter and it didn't help when Kushina slapped a hand over her mouth and Hashirama covered his eyes shaking his head.

Now her shoulders were practically shaking in silent laughter "Well Sakura was it otouto that took you're first kiss because you were clumsy" Itachi breathed yet again right on her ear and she managed to push aside her amusement.

For a few brief seconds "Unfortunately no, Sasuke's first kiss belongs to N..Naruto and vice versa" Sakura admitted trying vainly not to crack up laughing when a stunned silence filled the air and Itachi moved away from her.

Probably no doubt unable to believe what he'd been told "If I hadn't seen it myself I'd probably be just as shocked, but what happened was Naruto had to be an idiot and someone's elbow knocked him forward and well they both ended up in a lip lock" she cleared her throat.

"If it wasn't those two teammates of yours, that boy from yesterday or Itachi-kun who was you're first kiss and how many guys have kissed you" the shark like man got to the root of the reason they got the girls attention in the first place.

And finally asked the question that was bothering the both of them it was a question Sakura really didn't want to answer so tried to bolt "Ah, ah, ah don't think so, I could flare my chakra right now and you could possibly be considered a traitor for fraternizing with an enemy" the Uchiha warned.

Jade eyes narrowed in response at the threat "In doing so you'd jeopardize your miss…mmmpphm" the pinkette was cut off as his lips brushed against hers, this wasn't a kiss she'd been expecting so her arms came up and shoved.

The Uchiha must have been expecting her reaction and deepened the kiss, prying her lips open with his tongue and delving into her mouth, pink muscle tangling with a reluctant inexperienced one as he wrapped his arms tightly around her body.

One hand coming up to twine in silky pink locks and tug gently, emerald eyes widened so wide one could see the whites of her irises and she pushed more insistently at his shoulders to be released, her composure had just been broken.

Because she definitely wasn't ready to experience anything beyond the norm of regular kissing _"Why the hell are we just standing here watching when we could help Hashirama"_ Kushina shrieked realizing that they weren't exactly useless and could manifest a bit.

The brunette shook his head free of the cobwebs _"If we do that, they'll definitely be suspicious and it would draw to much attention onto Sakura-chan"_ Hashirama realized at the last second how much more trouble Sakura could get into if they did reveal themselves.

Her body was to hot and she was getting uncomfortable from the heat of it but try as she might with all of her strength she just couldn't get angry, her eyes squeezed shut to concentrate to calm her heart compose herself, she couldn't lose focus.

And with that she jerked her head back "E..Enough I get it already okay four that's how many" the pinkette scowled focusing chakra into her arms to create even more distance between her and the Uchiha in control of the situation once more.

"Do you truly Pinky, I think the point Itachi-kun was trying to make there was to not let every single guy that you meet kiss you regardless of the situation" Kisame pointed out bluntly knowing what his partner was thinking.

It didn't matter that they were enemies right now, she was still a little girl and a simple kiss could turn into so much more and before the brat knew it her virginity could be stolen "Kisame is right, if you hadn't gathered you're composure, I could have done something much worse to you than that" Itachi stated.

Kushina and Hashirama suddenly looked uncomfortable "I'm not you know, it was broken a long time ago, that Grass Shinobi did it, he used a kunai" Sakura said in a flat tone mind flashing back to that single moment and the agony she'd felt because of it.

And then when her parents explained what happened not only that the shinobi who'd rescued her hadn't been able to find Karin, she'd completely broken down "None of them even know the secret you're hiding" the rogue from mist commented.

Sakura shook her head "Why something like that you should be able to tell them, unless, when did this happen" the ebony haired male prodded a little to harshly and Sakura flinched in response indicating the answer wasn't going to be good.

"E..Eight I was eight, now if you don't mind I have to get back" the rose haired girl turned on her heel and vanished that would be the last time she ever wound up alone with those two even if it was the last thing she ever did.

Kushina and Hashirama trailed behind her guilt in their gazes _"If only we'd been able to help her that one time"_ the Uzumaki woman sighed feeling terrible as Sakura made a pit stop to clean up a bit and heal her swollen lips and straighten her clothes.

" _Agreed but talking or thinking about it now won't help, Sakura is strong and she'll come out stronger every time"_ the First Hokage announced, he wouldn't lose his little protege, couldn't, he refused to actually.

Once she felt ready Sakura returned to the hotel "There you are Sakura-chan, so what was it you forgot anyway" Naruto literally pounced on his friend, he'd been waiting for what felt like a long time, when in reality it had only been twenty minutes since she'd been gone.

Funny how things can seem like they took a lifetime to do when in actuality very little time could pass "My tantou, I take it Haku went to help Jiraiya-sama scrounge up information on Tsunade-sama" Sakura inquired sitting down in her previous spot.

Naruto nodded and together they practiced what they'd been taught by the time lunch rolled around Sakura had pretty much gotten fire nature down and the leaf burned to an ashy crisp "Come on knucklehead I'm in the mood for Dango" the pinkette stood.

Prompting Naruto to do the same "Maybe we could take some to Haku and Pervy Sage to" the blonde grinned following his teammate out the door, all the way to the local tea shop to order lunch for themselves and their companions.

They ate first getting a plate of ten sticks of dango four of which were eaten by Naruto, who also devoured four bowls of ramen and one order of rice and curry because of how much chakra he was burning through.

While Sakura ate the remaining six dango, one bowl of chicken ramen and sweet potato-vegetable curry and rice along with two flasks of green tea "That really hit the spot" the chunin commented picking her teeth clean with one of the dango sticks.

"Hey, hey what do you think Pervy Sage and Haku would like" the only blonde Uzumaki in existence prodded once they'd paid for their individual bill and started looking through the menu for lunch for their companions.

In the end they settled on a box of ten dango, followed by four orders of regular rice and curry, two for each of them and four flasks of green tea to go, all that was left was to find Haku and Jiraiya, which wasn't to hard really.

"How sweet thank you very much Sakura" Jiraiya grinned from ear to ear ruffling the girls short hair lightly trying not to be to weird, she'd done a lot for him after all by leaving him dinner and breakfast every morning and night.

Though lunch was a nice change of pace "Yes thank you Sakura and Naruto" Haku cleared his throat including the blonde into the statement as he had a feeling that lunch for them had mostly been the boy's idea, the girl had just paid.

But whatever it was a nice gesture "It was nothing Jiraiya-sama, Haku, oh by the way I think I'm ready to learn my first fire jutsu" Sakura shrugged lightly with an innocent smile on her lips as if speeding through the training of a new element was no big deal for her.

It wasn't really, Jiraiya stared at her in surprise "And if you could give me a few pointers as well on what it is I'm exactly supposed to be doing Pervy Sage that would be great" Naruto exclaimed unable to be jealous because Sakura was doing all that hard work for him and their friends.

Plus he was learning a super cool jutsu out of it all "Very well then, let's go find a nice quiet spot" the white haired male finally relented to the request, though he was shocked at how quickly the girl had managed to burn the leaf.

Maybe he'd have her show him before teaching her a fire jutsu "Really Sakura another element, are you trying to go for learning all of the elements" the doe eyed teen laughed as they set forth to just a little bit outside the small town they were in.

Sakura smiled innocently in response "Would you like me to demonstrate first Jiraiya-sama" the pinkette inquired picking up a leaf and holding it in the palm of her hand when he nodded for her to do so and then she concentrated.

On turning her chakra into fire the leaf started burning slowly at first before the flame consumed the leaf in less than ten minutes the entire leaf was burnt to a crisp "That's Sakura-chan, she's always understood things better than everyone else" the blue eyed boy grinned from ear to ear.

Proud for his friend "Hmm perhaps Sakura should be the one learning the rasengan, not that you will, just I don't get it, anyway here is you're fire jutsu Sakura, Katon: Fireball Jutsu" the Toad Sage ran through a list of hand signs.

Built up chakra in his throat before releasing a medium sized fireball that fizzled out after a short distance "Now for Naruto show me what you've got so far" then the Sannin turned to the knucklehead in their midst to give him a few pointers as requested.

Haku stood back watching "Are you really trying to learn all five elements Sakura" the ebony haired fifteen year old questioned wondering what the hurry was, surely she could take a break and relax wasn't the danger over yet.

Emerald orbs turned his way and Sakura nodded "Yes and as soon as we get back to Leaf I'm going to ask Kakashi-sensei to teach me lightning nature, Katon: Fireball Jutsu" the thirteen year old chunin sped through the hand signs she'd just been taught.

And set off her first fire jutsu, which was less than impressive, but she'd soon get it that was the whole point of practicing after all "Gah I don't understand what your saying at all Pervy Sage" the Uzumaki boy shouted in the next moment.

Drawing amused smiles onto his friends faces he was such a knucklehead _"My poor little Naruto-kun someday you'll understand just try not to grow up to fast, not like Sakura-chan anyway you know"_ the ghost of his mother shook her head with a small laugh.

Hashirama chuckled under his breath, though there was guilt in his ebony orbs, they'd forced a young girl to grow up to quickly in order to prepare her for the future they were in now in order to protect the Leaf Village _"If you can hear me Kami-sama forgive us"_ the First Hokage murmured.

To low for his little secret protege to hear, but the woman at his side definitely heard as they watched the interactions of the four shinobi before eventually they headed back into the town for dinner and back to the hotel for showers and shut eye.

They spent two weeks there looking for information on their target before finally picking up on some gossip of the woman they were after, so Tanzaku Town was their next destination "I think you scared her away Itachi-kun" Kisame commented as they prepared to set out.

In those two weeks the lone girl on the mission had stuck like glue to her mission companions and never went anywhere without them to avoid being caught alone "Agreed, but she also knows we're still here" Itachi nodded.

"Well this is it Naruto, Sakura, Jiraiya-sama, I've spent long enough away from Zabuza-sama and it's time I get back" Haku waved as they headed for the exit of the village to continue their mission, the three friends knew they would see each other again after all.

So it wasn't exactly good bye just a farewell for now "Right if we get back and we get a break we're definitely going to come visit you guys so see you next time Haku" Naruto waved a lot more exuberantly.

Earning a fond smile "Yeesh quite lollygagging you two he's gone, we have to get going now or that woman will disappear on us" Jiraiya ushered his two young companions along down the path, they had to hurry or something bad would happen.

Dread filled her stomach "From here on out Naruto be more alert okay even if you are trying to master the last step of your jutsu, I've got a bad feeling" Sakura warned growing rigid, something terrible loomed in the distance that was their destination.

And she knew she wasn't going to like the confrontation at all _"Good idea Sakura-chan let's scare Naruto out of his mind why don't you"_ Kushina sighed as Naruto gulped and walked as close to his friend as he could without seeming indecent.

" _You know she's right Kushina, something isn't right here at all, I think Orochimaru might have found Tsuna-chan before us, we're going on ahead Sakura-chan"_ Hashirama frowned deeply and then just like that both spirits attached to her were gone.

Sakura gripped the lapels of her pack tightly in her hands and spread out her senses getting ready the best way she knew how, Jiraiya shot her a look that was completely missed "Oddest girl I've ever met" the white haired male shook his head.

Not only that but the closer they got to Tanzaku town the tenser she got in response "Do you really think something bad is going to happen Sakura-chan" the blonde at her side inquired knowing that it wouldn't be wise to brush off her feelings on the matter.

She nodded quietly just as her two ghostly companions returned grim faced _"They are in a confrontation with one another as we speak, it's bad Sakura-chan"_ the violet eyed red haired woman said.

" _Indeed he offered to bring back those most precious to Tsuna-chan, Nawaki and Dan, if she healed his arms and she didn't outright refuse him"_ the brunette spirit stated looking more haunted than he had in the entire time she'd known him.

"Very bad Naruto, very, very bad it's not going to be good and things are going to get very rough for us" the pinkette finally spoke startling the boy at her side, who clutched her hand that she held out for him to take tightly.

Behind them using chakra to enhance their hearing the two rogues frowned at the comment the lone girl had made "And every step nearer they take to Tanzaku, she grows more and more tense, you don't think she'll make a run for it do you Itachi-kun" the blue skinned man questioned.

Itachi narrowed his ebony irises in response "We'll have to wait and see, it's to soon to say if she'll run or not, especially since she hasn't so far" the Uchiha commented as they kept an even pace and distance while suppressing their chakra to follow the Leaf Shinobi.

Less than an hour later they'd all reached Tanzaku Town _"Make a casual statement how you want to go see the castle, Jiraiya will notice right away that it's gone, that way you don't have to spend time searching so long as Tsunade is still there"_ the Uzumaki woman commanded suddenly.

Sakura blew out a breath "Jiraiya-sama you think Tsunade-sama would be interested in the castle any" the pink haired chunin uttered those words earning a surprised glance, though just as thought Jiraiya glanced in the direction of where the castle was supposed to be.

Only to find it not there "Come on you two somethings not right with this situation" the Toad Sage ordered leading the duo forward not suspicious in the least or why the girl had made mention of the castle.

The rogues behind them weren't so stupid "She didn't even look but she knew it wasn't there you think Orochimaru met up with the woman already and she knows it, that must explain the unusual tension" the rogue from mist and wielder of Samehada glared.

Just what the hell was up with that little pink haired girl anyway "Quite but she knows we wouldn't be so reckless to reveal ourselves before Naruto, who'd run screaming to Jiraiya and she'll stick like glue to their sides to avoid having a confrontation with us" the ebony haired rogue pointed out.

It was frustrating to know they'd somewhat been outwitted by a little girl _"Nicely done Sakura-chan, though you might end up having to search for Tsuna-chan if she's not there anyway"_ the First Hokage explained with a sheepish smile.

No longer looking haunted like earlier, it was a relief to her heart "Ugh I'm so tired of searching where the heck is this lady" the young Uzumaki boy on Team Seven groaned, it felt like they'd been gone forever and now he just wanted to go home.

This earned a small smile of fondness and his hand was squeezed gently as they finally came upon the scene, Tanzaku Castle was destroyed, there were droplets of blood on the ground, senbon needles and one wall surrounding the castle was obliterated.

It appeared they were to late and Tsunade was gone "Definitely Tsunade's handy work, but drat we're to late, you two go search around, I'm going to hit the exits of the town see if she headed that way" Jiraiya groaned.

Also growing frustrated "You got it Pervy Sage, where do you think we should search Sakura-chan" Naruto pumped his arm trying to muster up more enthusiasm though he was exhausted as Jiraiya left them to their own devices.

His teammate sighed _"Leave that to us Sakura-chan, Hashirama's pretty good at finding her so we'll find you once we find her"_ Kushina offered without having to be asked and then was gone just fading through the wall on her right.

" _Right though if you're going to help search try hot springs or hotels, leave the bars to us"_ Hashirama rubbed his forehead before heading off after his companion as a spirit on the search for his granddaughter once more.

"Come on knucklehead lets search hot springs or look around at the hotels" Sakura tugged Naruto along after her as they walked down the streets of Tanzaku Town looking for hot springs and hotels though each one they searched they came up empty.

The day was definitely winding into night when Naruto complained for the third time "Sakura-chan I'm hungry" the blue eyed boy pouted at his friend stomach rumbling and ready to take a good long break.

Sakura let out a long suffering sigh "Okay, okay let's stop in there" the emerald eyed girl pointed to a random restaurant and there their mission target sat innocently in one of the booths with another woman who must be Shizune Kato.

Her brow twitched in frustration "What is it Sakura-chan why do you suddenly look irritated" the blonde at her side asked obliviously as his teammate tugged him forward towards an already occupied booth.

"We've been looking for you everywhere Tsunade-sama, Naruto, Jiraiya-sama and I to be precise" the rose haired girl stated once they came to a stop before the two women, she didn't dare sit though and flared her chakra in hopes that Jiraiya would get the hint.

Both women glanced towards the two obvious Leaf Shinobi "What's a couple of genin brats doing all the way in Tanzaku Town" Tsunade snapped irritated herself if the angry tick on her forehead was anything to go by.

"Um T..Tsunade-sama that girl is not a genin, she's wearing a chunin vest" Shizune announced to her mentor eyeing the duo warily then she remembered the other name mentioned just as said person stepped into the restaurant.

And hurried towards them "Good work Sakura, mind if we sit Tsunade" the Toad Sage didn't give the woman a choice and sat, followed by Naruto and Sakura who sat on the outside so that she could react without being hindered of the booth table.

Tsunade grit her teeth as her honey eyes hardened in a glare that could scare the devil himself into submission "What the hell are you doing here Jiraiya, with a couple of brats" the pale blonde reiterated her earlier question.

Demanding an answer or all hell would break loose "U..um pa..pardon Milady sh..she's just been having a rough day" the raven haired woman was definitely a lot nicer than her mentor and tried to calm the situation down though it didn't do any good.

"We've been looking for you Tsunade, it's time for you to inherit your birthright and become the Fifth Hokage, the Elders decided on you" Jiraiya answered calmly keeping a wary eye on his old teammate in case she attacked.

Her honey eyes hardened even more and the glare deepened "Not interested, that's a fools job heard that, that old Sarutobi kicked the bucket anyway why don't you become the Hokage" Tsunade waved her hand dismissively.

Features in a near snarl as she spoke completely ignoring the two little brats with her old teammate as the conversation continued until a hand slammed down on the table "I don't care if she is a lady I'm gonna take her down no one insults the old man in front of me" Naruto snarled.

Pointing an accusing finger at Tsunade and glaring as hard as he could, the girl at his side gave him an you're an idiot look "He's right you know, Third-sama was your sensei h..how could you be so uncaring" Sakura frowned not liking the version of Tsunade she was witnessing.

From the time she could remember Hashirama had told her countless stories of Tsunade Senju, one of the Legendary Sannin and medical genius but what she saw now versus what she'd been told was kind of seriously disappointing to her.

" _What happened to you Tsunade, this is not you are you still that lost that you can't even see that your destroying yourself"_ speaking of Hashirama, the brunette and Kushina had returned in time to hear the utter contempt come from the woman.

Who stared in surprise at Sakura "Then both of you little brats don't know a thing about the real world, ha Hokage, you'll just end up dead if that's you're dream" the busty blonde snapped angrily rising to her feet.

Jiraiya knew he had to act quick before the first punch was thrown "W..We don't need anymore debt Tsunade-sama" Shizune scrounged for an excuse to get her mentor to calm down once more and Jiraiya blew out a breath of relief.

"Kami intense as ever huh Tsunade, but still we can't leave the Elders decided on you" the white haired Sannin explained knowing that it wouldn't convince the woman considering the conversation thus far.

Naruto sat down grumpily at his teammates side listening to the conversation until the woman said something that pissed him off immensely "That's it I'm taking you down lady if it's the last thing I do" he was on his feet again and threw a punch.

Only to be held back by Jiraiya "Let's go outside then" Tsunade stood yet again and with that they all traipsed outside where a fight broke out, Sakura sighed so tired of all the crap that had been happening recently.

The fight didn't last long "Baka, just had to pick a fight with her didn't you, I'm angry to you know" the pinkette snorted body flickering after her teammate to bring him to a stop as he went flying backwards and went about healing him.

As he sat there unhappily "You know medical ninjutsu" the ebony haired assistant of Tsunade's inquired seeing the bright green glow of the mystical palm jutsu, emerald irises flickered briefly in her direction.

"Yes since I was eight, I've always had good chakra control plus with this knucklehead and that idiot Uchiha on my team who constantly go around picking fights with everyone and getting injured my skills come in handy" Sakura shrugged.

"Did you know Jiraiya" the honey eyed blonde glared in her old teammate's direction, one surprise after another it seemed because the man nodded looking a little to smug for her tastes and she itched to punch that look off his face.

His onyx eyes narrowed "Not only that but she can utilize your chakra enhanced strength as well and knows four of the five elements" Jiraiya commented, that was the extent of all he knew about the girl because she was a little to secretive about her abilities sometimes.

The woman couldn't help but get even more irritated than she already was then "How about a bet then, if you blonde brat can master Rasengan in a week and you girl can master the last remaining element in the same time frame, I'll come back to the village, throw in this necklace for blonde brat and take you girl on as my apprentice" Tsunade offered.

Utter silence met this statement _"Alright isn't that awesome Sakura-chan it's a dream come true for you huh"_ the violet eyed ghost pumped her arm already knowing that the two teens would ensure they won the bet no matter what it took.

"You have a deal old lady, I'll have Rasengan down before the end of the week Believe It" Naruto punctuated his statement by punching the air, before falling flat on his back completely unconscious, everyone stared down at him in varying degree's of amusement.

While his female teammate shook her head "Knucklehead baka and I haven't learned lightning nature, just tell me what I have to do and I'll master it in a week" Sakura hefted her teammate up and threw his arm over her shoulder with brute strength.

"Charge your chakra, feel the electricity in it and use a piece of paper for reference, how you know it's working the edges will crinkle up" the woman scoffed turned on her heel and vanished with Shizune seconds behind her.

Jiraiya rubbed his forehead "Let's go you two, I'd like to check in to the same hotel as those women" the Toad Sage ordered and the three of them, though one of them was unconscious sped off after the two women, checked into the same hotel and settled down for the night to get some shut eye for the next day.


	16. A Fight With Their Lives on the Line

"Don't understand why you want to be that mean old lady's apprentice anyway Sakura-chan, she's mean and insulted the old man and the Hokage position" Naruto ranted the next morning as they set forth to find a good place to train together.

This earned a long suffering sigh from his teammate "Because Naruto the pro's outweigh the con's if we convince Tsunade-sama to come back with us, I'll get the training I need to seriously improve and you'll be better protected because of it" Sakura stated wisely.

Naruto slumped his shoulders knowing there was no arguing with Sakura once she decided on something there was no backing out or giving up for her _"Well said Sakura-chan, not only that being the Hokage's apprentice will get you into area's you never even imagined before"_ Hashirama boasted.

Only to be whacked _"You make it sound like Sakura-chan would take advantage of such a thing baka-Hashirama ooh what about here this looks like a good place to train you know"_ Kushina snorted before perking up at the clearing they were in.

So Sakura came to a swift halt and gave the area a once over before nodding and pulled out a piece of paper ready to train "Really here Sakura-chan" the blonde looked around not noticing what his teammate saw at first.

"Goofball this is the perfect place to master your rasengan, plenty of targets, like the tree's" the pinkette announced quietly before lapsing into silence to focus on her newest task, she wouldn't let the opportunity to train under Tsunade slip through her fingers after all.

And she really hated to lose at bets _"We're going to go check on those three"_ the violet eyed spirit said suddenly because undoubtedly things were going to get extremely repetitive and she didn't want to stick around and watch for hours on end.

Hashirama eyed his companion then shrugged _"Right just make sure you don't go overboard Sakura-chan and exert yourself and don't let Naruto do that either"_ the brunette ghost reminded lightly before both spirits were gone.

For the next three hours clear from 8:12 to 11:23 Sakura and Naruto practiced or focused in order to ensure victory on their individual bets until the inevitable happened "Sakura-chan I'm hungry, but I don't want to go back into town to get something to eat" the blue eyed boy groaned pitifully.

The lone girl in the clearing lowered her piece of paper, not a single crinkle to it at all and sighed "Lucky for you because we aren't going back into town, we're eating out here, also let me see your hands" the emerald eyed chunin grinned.

Unsealing that afternoon's meal from one of her heated storage scrolls of a large pot of ramen, vegetables, and a pitcher of herbal energy restoring tea with chakra restorative pills crushed within two bowls, chopsticks, and empty flasks to be filled with the tea.

Seeing the spread Naruto swallowed thickly drool leaking from the corner of his mouth but dutifully held out his hands as requested so that Sakura could heal the chakra burns he'd given himself before they both dug in.

Once they were done they both started up their individual training again "How's things going did you guys eat lunch already" it wasn't more than twenty minutes after that, that Shizune showed up with Tonton in tow and a box of take out from one of the restaurants.

"I made lunch this morning, asked the cook of the hotel if I could borrow his kitchen, he was all to happy to oblige when I shared a secret recipe to him" Sakura answered easily glaring at her piece of paper, out of all of the natures, lightning would probably prove to be her downfall.

Perhaps it would be impossible for her to learn in a week, fire had been easy, wind had been difficult and lightning was on a whole level of it's own as the most destructive element known to mankind.

"Yeah, yeah and what a delicious lunch it was, ramen and veggies and delicious tea that really boosted my energy to keep me going" Naruto was practically bouncing off the walls bursting with boundless energy to the two females amusement.

Shizune eyed the box in her hand "Well if you get hungry later I got you two curry and rice with green tea" the ebony haired woman set down the box, then hurried off, she'd hoped to befriend the two young teens, or at least talk to them, but they were both so training obsessed.

They'd woken up at the crack of dawn for breakfast after all and then Sakura had vanished on them, though apparently she'd went to the kitchen of the hotel and made lunch, "She seems nice" the Uzumaki boy commented watching her go.

Sakura let a small smile form on her lips "Kind of feel bad for her, being drug around on Tsunade-sama's whims" the pink haired chunin explained, then redoubled her efforts on trying to make her chakra become electrical to crinkle the edge of the paper.

By the time it was dinner, the edges had slowly, very slowly started crinkling, it was a start, but not quite an accomplishment, Naruto was out for the count to so they warmed up the curry and tea and ate there in their clearing before traipsing back to the hotel for showers.

"Have you two seriously been out there training all day" Tsunade gaped when the duo entered their hotel room with Jiraiya, though she'd been sitting there visiting with her old teammate, both Naruto and Sakura nodded.

And the ivory haired Sannin rolled his eyes "You did make that bet with them Tsunade, plus their training oriented, well Sakura is, blonde brat just follows her around like a hyperactive puppy" Jiraiya snorted though his words sounded harsh there was a fond tune to them.

His mission companions picked up on that funnily enough, Tsunade scoffed under her breath "Just make sure you take care of yourselves out there then" the honey eyed woman grumbled, stood and left the room.

"Come to think of it Sakura were you the only one to get promoted to Chunin" Shizune inquired pausing in the doorway to ask her question of the younger kunoichi, ebony orbs focused on the young girl in their midst.

She shook her head "No, Shikamaru Nara to, we both beat our opponents and impressed the judges, though I got the impression from the Elders, Koharu-sama and Homura-sama that certain someones thought I deserved being promoted more than them" Sakura quipped innocently.

The boy at her side turned beet red and fled "I claim shower first" Naruto shouted diving into the bathroom, the door slammed shut behind him, Sakura, Jiraiya and Shizune laughed at his antics before Shizune left following after her mentor.

"Wait a second you mean Koharu and Homura promoted you to chunin themselves, must have been some meeting huh" the white haired male whistled as the conversation sunk in and his brain caught up.

Emerald irises flashed his way before Sakura nodded "Yeah, though they sent an anbu to collect me, I really thought I was going to get a scolding or something and then I was told about this mission" the pink haired girl sat on the bed waiting for her turn at the shower.

Before something occurred to her "And you better not use all the hot water knucklehead" she called knowing that it would happen anyway and she'd be taking a cold shower, oh well it would feel nice on her heated skin.

Jiraiya snorted lightly and leaned back "So what did you two do for lunch and dinner" the Toad Sage questioned not wanting to admit it but he was exhausted, this mission was wearing down on him and he was ready to go home.

"Um Sakura-chan could you bring me my pack" the blonde's voice called out from the other side of the door before the girl could answer the Sannin's question, she stood with Naruto's pack in hand and went over to the bathroom door.

Opened it a crack and fitted the pack through which was took and the door was shut and locked again "Made ramen with energy boosting vegetables and tea that boosted energy as well, that had crushed up chakra restoration pills in it" the pinkette explained.

Surprising the man "And for dinner Shizune brought us curry, you're turn Sakura-chan and I swear I didn't use all the hot water this time" Naruto traipsed from the bathroom a moment later, dressed in clean clothes and hair dripping wet.

His teammate popped up "Remember to set your alarm clock Naruto, since mine got broken" Sakura said then vanished into the bathroom, neatly folded clothes in her arms, she wasn't in there for more than fifteen minutes.

Before she emerged dry and dressed in sleep clothes, padded barefoot to the bed she had chosen, climbed into it made sure the alarm was set for the proper time, flipped the covers over her body and five minutes later was out like a light, like her teammate.

"Ugh I can't keep up with those two sometimes" Jiraiya shook his head before deciding it was better to go to sleep early himself and not more than fifteen minutes later all three of them were snoozing the night away.

Only to be woken once again at the crack of dawn by that blasted alarm clock blaring annoyingly in their ears, before it could be smacked, Naruto grabbed his alarm and hurriedly shut it off, Sakura smiled sheepishly at him while Jiraiya groaned, rolled over and went back to sleep.

Now that there was no more noise "Are you gonna make that ramen again Sakura-chan, can there be more of it" the blue eyed boy inquired as they dressed individually in the bathroom taking turns before leaving their hotel room at exactly 5:10.

"Yes Naruto and anything you want because that was my best homemade ramen yet" the emerald eyed girl nodded as they creeped quietly past doorways to avoid waking the other occupants of the hotel and down to the cafeteria for breakfast.

Though she wouldn't have a bloody clue how to make it if it hadn't been for Kushina teaching her _"We're gonna scope out the town today keep an eye on things"_ speaking of the two ghosts that followed her around chose that moment to appear.

She gave no reaction to their presence like usual and tilted her head in acknowledgment _"Indeed so just make sure you two take care of yourselves"_ the First Hokage warned yet again before the duo were gone to snoop around Tanzaku Town.

"Just knew it, why the bloody blazes are you two up at the crack of dawn anyway" Tsunade suddenly appeared behind the two teammates only the boy jumped a foot in the air and nearly let out a shriek of fright but was stopped courtesy of a hand being pressed over his mouth.

"Breakfast, making lunch and dinner then off to train" the pinkette ticked off her fingers lightly choosing the healthiest food items she could find, then with tray in arms found an empty table to sit at to eat.

Naruto on her heels with ramen predictably "You think I should get something healthier Sakura-chan, or at the very least add vegetables" the blonde frowned feeling just a tiny bit guilty, that guilt went away when she flashed him a small smile.

Tsunade snorted "Bet you feel like a fool accepting that bet against me, lightning nature chakra isn't going to be easy to master after all" the honey eyed woman taunted trying to get a rise out of the girl, to see if she had a bad temper.

All her efforts earned was a light shrug "I regret nothing and Tsunade-sama I don't give up either, yesterday I managed to crinkle the edge of the paper just slightly, today I'll crinkle it more and master lightning nature chakra before the end of the week" Sakura stated simply.

"Granny one thing you should know about Sakura-chan is that once she decides on something it's as good as done for her" Naruto piped in returning from getting vegetables to add to his ramen, trying to at least be a little healthy.

A pale blonde brow twitched in irritation "Whatever you little brats, you'll give up in the end and when that happens you'll have to give up all your money and something you consider important" Tsunade snapped rose to her feet and vanished from the cafeteria.

Sakura sighed and rubbed her forehead as a headache pounded through her skull "I'm sorry about Tsunade-sama, she's a little more temperamental in the morning" Shizune appeared moments after Tsunade's disappearance and sat with the two teens in hopes of conversing more with them.

To befriend them "Nah it's alright Shizune, Sakura-chan can be like a fire-breathing dragon in the morning sometimes to you know" the Uzumaki boy chimed in with a cheeky whiskered grin and Sakura rolled her eyes at him in mild amusement/exasperation.

"Unfortunately it's true but that's only when I get next to no sleep or get waken up way to early for my tastes" the younger kunoichi pointed out with a cheeky smile of her own and her teammate puffed out his cheeks at her.

Before they both cracked up in quiet laughter trying not to disturb the half asleep occupants around the room, Shizune laughed lightly along with the duo before a question came to mind "So how long have you two been friends" the raven haired woman prodded gently.

"Since forever believe it" Naruto exclaimed barely managing to reign in his volume only because of the warning look he'd gotten from his best friend "Hehehe I think since we were seven right Sakura-chan" he smiled sheepishly.

Earning a nod "That's right though I kind of feel bad for playing all those pranks on Iruka-sensei though, but that's how our friendship started, I helped him play a prank on our academy sensei and we landed detention for a solid week" Sakura snickered lightly.

"Oh goodness you aren't supposed to pick on your sensei you know surely you didn't do it all the time otherwise you wouldn't have become genin right" Shizune questioned curiously finding the conversation thus far humorous.

Naruto and Sakura shared wide grins "We studied lots thanks to Sakura-chan when we didn't feel like pranking anyone or skipping classes, but it wasn't just me it was Kiba to and we were the dunces of the academy, the only reason we passed was cause of Sakura-chan" the blonde rambled.

Sakura nodded yet again polishing off her breakfast "I'll be back in a bit, then we'll set out for training" the pinkette stood, dumped the remains of her breakfast and returned the tray before vanishing into the kitchens.

Where she stayed for nearly two hours, by the time she emerged it was 7:13 "Just make sure you take care of yourselves out there" the raven haired woman waved as the duo disappeared from the hotel to their chosen spot to train.

And once there got to work immediately "Pinky is really avoiding us Itachi-kun, we can't even catch her alone nowadays" Kisame grumbled as he watched the two brats train, not only that but they had to be careful since Kabuto was snooping around as well.

They weren't the only ones watching the two Leaf Shinobi "It's for the best Kisame you know that, if we were to reveal ourselves now, then Orochimaru could flee and we would fail our mission" Itachi pointed out.

Onyx orbs narrowed in the direction he knew the other spy was hiding in watching Naruto and Sakura with hate in his gaze and finally the teenager couldn't resist approaching the young duo, in hopes of smooth talking them.

"If it isn't Naruto and Sakura from the Chunin Exams" that same gray haired onyx eyed teen came literally out of nowhere with an easygoing smile on his lips, he was good at lying after all and he was sporting his Leaf Village headband.

He kept them for this very reason after all, what he didn't expect to happen at his approach was for the lone girl to leap to her feet and grab the boy "Stay away from us" Sakura shoved her teammate behind her ready to body flicker them away to safety should the need to be necessary.

"Ack what's going on Saku….you what are you doing here you freak" Naruto crossed his arms over his chest keeping as close to Sakura's side as he dared which was basically pressed into her side as her arm came up to wind around his waist to hold him in place.

Kabuto eyed them strangely "Was in the area, sorry if I came off as being rude during the first exam or intimidated you it's just I didn't want anything to happen to you newbies" he smiled the fakest smile he could manage.

Sakura grew tenser "Do you really think that works you fake, I know a traitor when I see one, I can feel the snake like qualities to your chakra, you work for Orochimaru and I'm not going to let you touch Naruto" the pink haired Chunin snapped.

Edging them backwards just a little as the smile dropped off the older teens face and was replaced with instant dislike "Wait a second if he's a traitor then how come he's wearing a Leaf forehead protector" the Uzumaki boy exclaimed in confusion.

"I thought you would feel safer if I approached as a regular Leaf Shinobi, just as cautious as ever Haruno-san, tell me one thing before I go, why protect Naruto when you know Akatsuki is after him, when you know that your life will end if you continue trying to protect him, work for the Leaf Village that will destroy your life" Kabuto questioned.

Her face and eyes darkened in response and Naruto fell silent himself in order to hear the answer "Should my life be destroyed by the Leaf Village so be it, I will continue doing my duty as a Leaf Shinobi, for my dream, my country, village and Naruto, I will protect no matter the cost" Sakura stated.

The boy at her side felt a chill crawl down his spine in response to the passionate words "For we are the leaves that take in sustenance in order to keep the great tree known as Konoha working and the Hokage is the bough that supports us" Naruto recited.

Reaffirming his own beliefs, dream and motto to never quit or back down from a fight "And many ripples will change the tide of a battle to the other side's favor, kind of sounds like you sometimes Itachi-kun" the blue skinned man commented to his partner.

Itachi narrowed his eyes and he wondered just how far the girl would go to protect her village "I am nothing like them, I cut my ties with the Leaf Village long ago" the raven haired eighteen year old said in a blunt unimpressed tone.

Kisame shrugged in response as they focused their gazes on the trio in the clearing once more as Kabuto left looking more irritated than ever, trouble was definitely in the foreseeable future and the two young Leaf Shinobi knew this.

As they immediately redoubled their efforts on training and by the time it was lunch, Sakura had crinkled more of the paper in her hand and Naruto was almost certain he'd figured out the trick to mastering the Rasengan as they sat down to eat a delicious lunch.

Courtesy of Sakura, which was ramen and veggies and that delicious energy/chakra restoring tea "Sakura-chan this is purely hypothetical okay..but say so..someone o..orders you to betray the village for the good of the village, what would you do" the blue eyed boy inquired suddenly.

Less than ten minutes later, Sakura froze, then lowered her chopsticks into her bowl "For the good of the village huh…I would probably do it, betray everything I know and protect the village from the shadows to make sure nothing happens to my home" the emerald eyed Chunin admitted.

Never knowing how affected by her words a certain eavesdropping Uchiha was "But why Sakura-chan is it worth it to lose all of your friends f..for the sake of the village" Naruto jumped up tears in his baby blue eyes.

Her eyes softened to a painful degree "I..If it meant protecting you and everyone else Naruto, then yes it's worth it, there isn't anything I wouldn't do for the village I love with my entire being even if it meant betraying you or Karin, or Sasuke and all our friends" Sakura said.

"She's hiding something Itachi-kun, a huge secret, she knows something she shouldn't know" Kisame pointed out suddenly not liking the turn in conversation that they were eavesdropping on, it sounded like to him if push came to shove the girl would betray her village.

In order to protect it, his partner was silent and stoic without a flicker of emotion in his onyx irises "Perhaps but we do not have a chance to question her" Itachi reminded in a flat tone, hands clenched into fists inside of his cloak.

Not long after that the conversation died down as the duo finished eating lunch and returned to training before eating leftovers and returning to the town and the hotel they were staying in "Ugh I'm never gonna master that damn rasengan at this rate" the blonde groaned.

After his shower that night and glaring at his chakra burn coated hands "Here knucklehead and you will don't give up that's your motto isn't it" the pinkette commanded hands already glowing green to heal him as she was use to.

Jiraiya sighed and leaned back on his chosen bed "Just make sure you take care of yourselves out there" the Toad Sage rolled his eyes, knowing they were but wanting to say it for the hell of it because he was pretty sure little kids weren't supposed to be that responsible.

With that after setting the alarm once again they all crawled beneath the covers of their chosen beds and went to sleep _"You think we should try it Hashirama, make contact with the kami, we are spirits after all and their bound to listen to us"_ Kushina questioned.

They were outside on the roof of the hotel, floating but looking as if they were sitting _"And what do you suggest we ask Kushina, that they give Sakura-chan their power in order to protect the Leaf"_ Hashirama snorted way to serious for once.

" _No baka-Hashirama for help they have that power you know"_ the violet eyed woman snapped smacking her companion as a spirit on the back of the head with a roll of her eyes, before leaning her head back to stare up at the night sky.

Dotting with twinkling stars in the inky black color _"You really think they would do that, revive us Kushina, we would actually be alive"_ the brunette spirit swallowed thickly doing the same as his friend, they'd all become close despite their differences.

Her hands clenched into fists _"Maybe not just us Hashirama but others that would be essential, crucial to saving the world from destruction and ruin"_ the red haired Uzumaki woman stated simply knowing that it would take a lot of work.

And that they were probably just setting themselves up for disappointment, they had to ask so that not everything was left up to sweet selfless Sakura-chan _"Let's do it then Kushina-san for Sakura-chan and Naruto and all those kids that are counting on her"_ the First Hokage nodded.

So they prayed as the days passed and Naruto and Sakura trained getting closer and closer to reaching their own goals before finally there was only one day left before the end of the bet drew to a close, they were nearly there.

"We're going out to do one last hoorah Jiraiya-sama on our training, I refuse to let the opportunity to train under Tsunade-sama slip through my fingers after all" the pink haired Chunin exclaimed as they all woke up that morning at five like had become the norm over the last week.

Even if she was sorely missing her two ghostly partners in crime, she hadn't seen hide nor hair of them in the last four days "Yeah cause I'm super close to getting the Rasengan down and this is the last day we have to train" the blonde boy exclaimed exuberantly.

The Sannin snorted "Good then you two just don't go crying when you fail and have to fork over all the money you have" Jiraiya rolled over and went back to sleep as he had the last week, he was just glad that they didn't pester him to much.

As the younger members on the mission snuck from the hotel room down to the cafeteria for breakfast, made lunch/dinner in the form of ramen and that delicious energy boosting/chakra restoring tea and set off for their clearing.

"You aren't going to stop for lunch are you Sakura-chan" Naruto guessed sensing the change in his best friend as she sat down in the same spot she'd occupied for six days straight now and pulled out a piece of paper.

Jade irises glanced briefly in his direction "Not this time Naruto, everyone's counting on us to bring back Tsunade-sama after all plus I want no need to be her apprentice" Sakura bit her lip harshly as she spoke, then focused on her task.

He did the same and three hours later, Naruto paused to take a break and eat the ramen that had been made while Sakura sat there pouring all of her concentration into crinkling the piece of paper as she worked to understand the trick.

It was almost all the way crinkled but her breathing was labored from the effort it took to control lightning based chakra and sweat was beaded across her brow and rolling down her face as the sun bore down on them.

Much as he wanted to tell her she should eat and take a break to, Naruto ate and returned to his own training, meanwhile all the way back in Tanzaku Town, the two ghosts that followed Sakura around were growing frustrated.

" _I don't understand why they won't help us, Sakura-chan shouldn't have to bare the burdens we've shoved off on her shoulders you know"_ Kushina scowled cursing out the kami as they sat upon the roof of the hotel.

" _We can't give up just yet Kushina-san we'll make them listen, make them help us no matter what even if we aren't revived, the least we can do is convince them to revive some people that would help"_ Hashirama stated as they prayed once more.

Convincing the kami to use their power for the future was an arduous and impossible task that they'd set upon themselves but if it would help the young girl and her friends that they'd admittedly influenced greatly they would do it.

Back at the clearing Sakura was finally taking a short break to eat and drink a somewhat late lunch "Are you just now eating Sakura-san" Shizune appeared as she was filling up her first bowl of ramen and flask of tea.

Sakura nodded quietly drying her neck and forehead free of sweat "Yeah I think I've finally got the trick to lightning based chakra now" the pinkette said dipping her chopsticks into the bowl of ramen and getting a good bunch before slurping them up properly without making to much noise.

Like her knucklehead teammate was fond of doing sometimes "Me to, I've about mastered Rasengan to" who piped in at that exact moment using his short cut to form the Rasengan in his hand and shove it into a tree.

Though he still had a little ways to go as partway through it lost form and the chakra spiraled out without creating the destruction it was known to cause, Shizune smiled fondly "I wish you two good luck then" the ebony haired woman waved hurrying off to leave the two to finish up.

Once Sakura was done eating she cracked her knuckles pulled out one last piece of paper and focused her concentration on it turning her chakra to lightning based chakra, feeling the static of electricity in her chakra and using that as her base to crinkle the paper.

It was instantaneous this time the paper crinkled slowly at first then as she grew use to it crinkled quicker until the entire piece of paper had crinkled "And with that she knows all the elements" Kisame frowned as the girl flopped back looking exhausted.

"Quite such a dangerous girl she'll turn out to be in the future and no doubt a thorn in Akatsuki's side" Itachi commented, he really thought she'd give up but now she could command not one or two but all the elements, that wasn't good in the least.

Relieved she'd managed it in the end "Looks like Granny will have no choice but to take you on as an apprentice now huh Sakura-chan" Naruto said lowering his arms feeling the pain in his hands from the various chakra burns.

At his words his teammate sat up "I'm sorry Naruto, here let me see your hands and yeah, so long as you manage to win your bet, we'll be on our way home day after tomorrow at the latest" Sakura grinned hands already glowing green to heal her friend.

Before he turned and tripled his efforts in mastering the rasengan, by the time dinner hit he was slowly losing hope, Sakura bit her lip watching "J..Just don't understand what I'm doing wrong" the blonde sulked looking lost and defeated.

Sakura tilted her head to the side going over what she knew about the technique, rotation, power and maintaining both at the same time were the steps, yet it was difficult for Naruto "Perhaps you could try using a shadow clone" the pinkette offered.

To blue eyes lit up in surprise at the unexpected hint, then he turned to give it one last try only to fall flat on his back as he ran out of chakra and passed out, Sakura sighed and hefted her teammate up with brute strength and carried him all the way to the hotel.

"Exerted himself did he" Tsunade snorted as she healed the boy who'd definitely gone a little overboard, Sakura rubbed her forehead hand glowing green to heal herself of the headache that formed, it's because she'd been so absorbed.

"Don't worry about the gaki he'll be fine Sakura, anyway we're going out for a drink so don't wait up for us, Shizune's already asleep" Jiraiya announced leaving the two kids on their own, hopefully they would manage to win the bets and they'd leave the day after tomorrow.

With a long suffering sigh Sakura went about cleaning up the hotel room and stowing away their belongings in packs, while only leaving out the essentials before taking a shower and crawling into her chosen bed.

The next morning things were chaotic _"Sakura-chan wake up, Tsunade drugged Jiraiya and knocked out Shizune, she's gone off to take care of Orochimaru"_ the violet eyed red haired spirit ordered and the girl jolted upright in bed.

" _First deal with Naruto, wake him, give him a chakra restoration pill, then go handle Shizune-san, Jiraiya will be here soon, though he's moving slowly, you'll have to give him an antidote to the drug"_ the brown haired spirit explained.

As their little protege scrambled around the room dressing quickly, before hastily waking Naruto "Whats going on Sakura-chan, wait a second what time is it oh no I didn't master the rasengan" the blonde panicked.

"Never mind about that now Naruto, Tsunade-sama is fighting Orochimaru as we speak, she drugged Jiraiya-sama and we have to wake Shizune-san, before going off to join the fight" Sakura held out a chakra restoration pill that he took.

Before they hurried into the hotel room that had been shared by the two women and found Shizune zonked out on the floor, it was easy to wake her as well "Wh..Where's Tsunade-sama" Shizune sat up panicking much like a certain blonde.

The situation was explained and Shizune ran for the window, she'd just stuck her head out when a kunai came whizzing in her direction "That damn Tsunade drugged me" Jiraiya was the culprit, his skin was pale.

Sakura bit her lip harshly _"Calm down Sakura-chan help Shizune burn the drug from his system with your healing chakra"_ the First Hokage instructed knowing that things were not going to be easy once they joined the fight.

She inhaled and exhaled calming her erratically beating heart as Shizune got started on burning the drug out of Jiraiya "Let me help as well, with both of us more of the drug would be flushed from Jiraiya-sama's system" the pinkette jumped in.

"Thank you Sakura, just myself I wouldn't be able to manage considering my chakra isn't working properly, Tsunade-sama didn't want to be stopped and I tried" the ebony haired woman was on the verge of tears.

As they worked quick on Jiraiya "Good enough I suppose now lets go, we have a snake to get rid of" the white haired Sannin grumbled straightening as they all jumped out the window after collecting their weapons and things they would need for a massive fight.

"D..Do you think we'll come out of this alright Sakura-chan" the blonde ran alongside his friend feeling dread pooling in his stomach, things were not going to be easy once they joined the fight and he didn't want one of them to end up dying.

His teammate reached out and squeezed his hand, she was tense, way tenser than usual, this fight was not going to turn out how things usually did for them, not only that but for the first time in nearly five days her two ghostly companions had showed themselves.

She wanted so badly to ask where they'd been, what they'd been doing, but as they were on their way to help possibly take down one of the Legendary Sannin and they hadn't followed her there was no time unless she wanted to reveal their presence.

Then suddenly the four of them were there and the clearing looked as if it had been destroyed, Tsunade was there fighting against not one but two opponents, Orochimaru and Kabuto "Ah I wondered when you'd be joining us" Orochimaru spoke not looking in their direction.

But Kabuto did and a smirk formed on his lips "We even got a little surprise for you Sakura, though he was quite resistant and didn't want to be reanimated, he couldn't break free on his own" Kabuto pulled out a scroll.

Upon sighting that person her heart dropped into her stomach "Get out of my way" Tsunade snarled not caring that a new enemy had appeared and slammed her fist straight through, it hit her then that the new opponent was a reanimated shinobi.

"H..How dare you reanimate him you bastard" Sakura grew furious because the way she saw it was that his grave had been desecrated and his spirit had been torn from the place it had been resting, she believed it to be heaven.

Fury sparked in her emerald irises as he charged forward after reforming "Come on blonde brat don't just stand there you'll be in her way" Jiraiya grabbed his apprentice out of the way in the nick of time as the two teens clashed.

"You really are stupid you have no idea what Sakura-chan's gonna do to you if she get's her hands on you" Naruto shook his head keeping close to his godfather as the fight progressed, between the two battling kunoichi.

It was scary how strong they were as destruction and chaos reigned on the chosen battlefield while Jiraiya took on Orochimaru and Shizune stood uselessly off to the side for the moment "Tsunade-sama" Shizune shrieked suddenly lunging for her mentor.

When Kabuto managed a good hit in on her and they skidded to a halt on the ground several meters away, thankfully he was more interested in watching the fight between the younger duo for the moment as he turned his onyx irises in their direction.

"Only sorry it has to be you kid that has to do this" Dosu still had the choice of talking but his actions weren't his own, Sakura grit her teeth and swung out with her fist sending the reanimated Sound Shinobi flying backwards to impact harshly with a rock.

Less than a moment later he reformed "And I'm sorry to, if I'd managed to convince the elders somehow your grave wouldn't have been desecrated" the pinkette shoved her conflicted feelings away allowing her to think logically during the fight.

"She's actually managing pretty well for a little girl I suppose" the Snake Sannin commented casually his opponent his old friend Jiraiya of course and one of the Legendary Sannin as well, and summoner to the Toads of Mount Myoboku.

Jiraiya as much as he wished that he didn't have to involve the two kids regardless of one of them being Chunin scoffed "The girl can do a lot more than you think and someday she'll become stronger than Tsunade" the Toad Sage spoke.

In the meantime the two silent tag-a-longs were waiting for their chance to reveal themselves and take out Orochimaru, they wouldn't get that chance as things went from worse to bad "Granny Tsunade" the blue eyed blonde charged forward suddenly.

As Kabuto stepped up his own attacks once more and neared Tsunade, who was down for the count because of her fear of blood, Naruto threw himself in front of the two women and caught the kunai headed straight for the older blonde.

Remembering Sakura's suggestion from the day before created a clone and perfectly executed the Rasengan, that's where everything went wrong "NARUTO" that's the last thing anyone heard as a loud explosion rocked the clearing nearly bursting everyone's eardrums and there was definite ringing in the ears for several minutes afterwards.

Dosu had set off one of his larger jutsu's and Sakura slid to the ground clutching her head as blood trickled from her ears and mouth barely conscious, that split second of distraction, when she'd seen Kabuto use the chakra scalpel on her teammate, her best friend/brother had been her downfall.

"I..I'm n..not go..going to let th..things end here" but she pushed herself to her feet and pulled out one of her sealing tags and lunged managing to land a good hit on Dosu, who became incapable of moving as she made a single hand sign "Seal" the pinkette gasped.

" _KAMI DO SOMETHING RIGHT NOW OR SO HELP ME I'LL BEAT EVERY LAST ONE OF YOU TO A BLOODY PULP AND YOU'LL FACE THE WRATH OF THE RED HOT HABENERO YOU KNOW"_ Kushina screamed to the sky realizing what was going to happen in the next moment.

As the jutsu was undone, and she only had mere seconds to turn and body flicker with the last of her chakra and like Naruto had done threw herself in front of Tsunade just as a voice shouted over the entire field "SNAP OUT OF IT TSUNA-CHAN" a familiar voice yelled.

Honey eyes widened "BRAT" Tsunade leaped to her feet dragging the younger kunoichi out of the way and struck out with a chakra enhanced fist at the advancing Kabuto, who'd healed himself only moments before and he went flying backwards.

Sakura couldn't hear a bloody thing anymore as she slid into an unconscious state as Tsunade went about healing Naruto "Are they going to be alright Tsunade-sama" Shizune eyed the two young shinobi, who'd put their lives on the line for her mentor.

"Th..They'll be fine probably just need rest" Jiraiya leaped to their side as they all simultaneously performed the summoning jutsu, he wouldn't admit it but he was definitely worried, not to mention his ears were still ringing.

From the jutsu that reanimated shinobi had used "Looks like you also need some rest Jiraiya-sensei" another familiar voice filled his ears, or ear as he could only hear out of one currently and the lot of them whipped around.

There were many of them and Tsunade couldn't help but stare as a blinding flash of light disrupted their vision "More unnecessary problems, come Kabuto we're retreating" Orochimaru was quick to flee in the next moment, with his retainer on his heels.

"What are we waiting for Itachi-kun, that snake is getting away" Kisame ranted as they stood hide in the shadows, of a tree suppressing their chakra, revealing themselves now would not be a good idea but he didn't understand that.

His partner shook his head "We wouldn't stand a chance against the First, Second and Fourth Hokage, let alone Kushina Uzumaki, or the other ones, we retreat as well and abort the mission, leader-sama will understand" Itachi ordered hurrying off.

The fight came to a swift end at the arrivals sudden appearance "Looks like we got here just in time huh Tsunade-chan" the one with pale blue hair and dark green eyes smiled hesitantly at his de-aged lover, it had been a random request so that he would get to be with her.

He was actually surprised the kami had granted it "B..But ho..how I don't understand a bloody thing that's going on in the least" the honey eyed blonde gaped as she spotted both of her most important people.

Standing side by side, though one had been aged in the revival "The kami actually sis, they said that things were going to get real bad and we would be crucial helping to protect this world" the straw blonde haired teenager explained carefully.

Not really believing that he was alive and now an eighteen year old "Plus I think they were more frightened of Kushina-san if they didn't heed her request" Hashirama chuckled, it having been him who'd shouted earlier.

And that clicked in his granddaughters mind "Yeah cause it's Sakura-chan and Naruto-kun you know baka-Hashirama" Kushina huffed walking forward daring anyone to argue as she did so that she was stood next to the two children.

Her hands immediately clenched into fists "And if I ever see those bastards again I'm going to beat them into a bloody pulp" the violet eyed woman snarled after the retreating Orochimaru and Kabuto, hoping they could hear her.

"Kushina you haven't changed at all, though where were you all this time and how do you two know each other" the Fourth Hokage inquired looking between his wife and the First Hokage curiously gleaming within his ocean blue depths.

It was the girl who answered, barely hearing the question but conscious "C..Cause K..Kushina-chan and Lord First h..have been stuck to me as g..ghosts since the day I was born a..and have been helping me through life so far" Sakura coughed.

"That explains it then why your so bloody weird" Jiraiya groaned only to get whacked over the back of the head by his students wife, he slid to the ground clutching his head and groaning in agony from the pain.

Kushina snorted and rolled her eyes "How on earth did you ever survive with that man guiding you" the Second Hokage Tobirama Senju creased his brow in concern, and eyed his older brother warily, though it did explain his absence in the afterlife.

Hashirama scowled "I'll have you know Tobirama that I give excellent advice when I'm not goofing off and Sakura-chan knows that" the brunette grumbled becoming depressed and Sakura sighed quietly sitting up carefully.

With several winces "I..Is Naruto really going to be alright that Kabuto hit him with the chakra scalpel" the pinkette felt like she was on the last leg herself as she scooted next to her friend looking him over in his entirety.

Taking note of his breathing, which was smooth and not labored and he seemed to be alright except for still being unconscious, her eyes softened and she let out a relieved sigh "Well is the kid going to be alright" the silent one, with raven hair and ebony eyes prodded.

When there was no answer "That gaki will be fine, I healed him after all and I still can't believe he managed to master the Rasengan in the heat of a fight though looks like you lost our bet Sakura" Tsunade responded shaking her head in amusement.

Sakura's brow twitched "I did no such thing Tsunade-sama and if I weren't so out of chakra right now I would show you, bu that's besides the point what were you hoping to accomplish by fighting them on your own" she stood carefully.

And pointed an accusing finger in the woman's face outright scolding her, Tsunade blinked "You have some nerve brat do you want to be met with my fist" the honey eyed blonde glowered fiercely at the young girl.

Who scowled right back "No just stop trying to take on everything by yourself, think about it if we'd all come here to fight together, Naruto wouldn't have been injured, if you'd come back with us instead of arguing, we wouldn't have had to fight at all" the girl stamped her foot.

Creating a three foot long fissure without the use of chakra "Ah but then we wouldn't have been revived" the last remaining revived shinobi with silver hair and onyx eyes piped in with a small chuckle, the girl certainly was interesting.

"True" emerald eyes shifted in his direction and gave him a once over "Are you related to Kakashi-sensei" Sakura creased her brow in confusion, there were definite similarities, but her brain was so exhausted, she couldn't quite make the connection properly.

Thankfully he nodded "Sakumo Hatake and that's my boy, I imagine it will be quite the surprise when we all return to the Leaf Village" Sakumo introduced himself, she slid to the ground in the next moment wearing a pained expression.

"You know Sakura-san, who was that fellow, the one in bandages that set off that jutsu that made our ears ring" Shizune got it in her mind to finally ask, since she was almost certain the pink haired kunoichi knew who the guy was.

A glare entered those expressive jade eyes "Dosu Kinuta, he was my opponent during the Chunin Exams and an enemy technically since he worked under Orochimaru but during the fight that ensued during one of the matches, he took a sword through the stomach for me and died" she sighed.

Looking exhausted now "Alright come on you let's go back to the hotel" Hashirama didn't hesitate in picking the girl up to everyone's surprise, Naruto was picked up by Jiraiya and with that they all traipsed back to the hotel to get some rest and deal with everything the next morning.


	17. Return

The next morning despite being exhausted, Sakura was one of the first few up and about at seven o'clock only because she was use to getting up early and after making sure Naruto was doing well, headed for the cafeteria.

She wasn't the only one who'd had the same idea and seconds after she'd sat down with a healthy energy restoring breakfast, someone joined her "So Anija trained you, you must feel honored being trained by the First Hokage" it was Tobirama.

"Of course I was honored Lord Second, but Lord First became more than just a Hokage to me, one of my best friends and a second father, who's just as goofy as my birth father all rolled into one weird package" Sakura grinned from ear to ear.

Before she ran out of energy to even smile "Better not forget Kushina or she's liable to whack you" Hashirama suddenly joined them and emerald eyes lit up and before Sakura could really stop or think threw herself at the man to give him a bone crushing hug.

That he didn't hesitate to return in the least "I..I really thought you guys had disappeared on me when you didn't show up for five days straight" then came the tears as Sakura clutched onto him even tighter, her emotions coming to the fore unable to keep them in check.

Hashirama felt like an idiot "We're sorry Sakura, it's just Kushina-san suggested we plead to the kami about what happened yesterday and it took time and patience" the brunette apologized just allowing the girl to cry for once.

Scolding her for her tears would get him no where especially after the last several weeks the girl had been through hell, it bothered him though, that those two rogue's hadn't showed up, perhaps at their return they'd simply retreated, it wouldn't be the last time they saw Itachi or Kisame though.

Eventually Sakura managed to dry her eyes and pull back with a grimace "Now it's my turn to hug you Sakura-chan" Kushina came out of no where in the next moment and scooped the young girl into her own bone crushing hug.

"At least you two can't go disappearing on me anymore unless you go off on a mission or something" the pinkette laughed enjoying the moment, though they were no longer her ghosts in crime, she would treasure those days till the end of time.

Kushina's violet eyes softened "Indeed and now whenever something happens between you and a boy I won't have to be there to witness such a thing" Hashirama teased suddenly and Sakura turned beet red in response.

From the roots of her hair all the way to the tips of her toes with the blush darkening every second that passed after the statement had been said "Breathe girl or you'll pass out" Tobirama ordered suddenly and Sakura inhaled sharply before coughing.

"Y..You are something else Lord First not even one whole day and your already trying to drive me insane" the emerald eyed girl groaned as she sat down in her previous spot and started eating her breakfast, while Hashirama smiled sheepishly.

And his former ghostly partner in crime shook her head "SAKURA-CHAN WHERE ARE YOU" a loud obnoxious voice shattered the silence of the entire hotel and the girl in question resisted the urge to bash her head on something.

Just as said loud obnoxious voice burst into the cafeteria with the others on his heels baby blue eyes wide and full of tears as he lunged for his best friend shaking horribly "I…I th..thought for sure" Naruto hugged the girl crying rivers of tears in his relief that she was alright.

"Ugh Knucklehead can't breathe and I'm fine, we were all more worried about you" Sakura murmured quietly letting her soothing chakra seep into Naruto to help calm him down, his tears slowly ebbed away and he settled on the bench next to her.

He went so far as to refuse to let his mother have that spot, one he didn't know who the woman was and two Sakura-chan was his best friend and if it weren't for her he was certain he'd be dead or worse still stuck in the academy and a complete and utter idiot.

The woman in questioned wasn't sure whether to be amused or annoyed "He doesn't know yet Kushina, give it sometime" Minato wrapped his arm around his wife's waist glad to have another chance to be with her and alive again.

Her shoulders drooped "So when will we be returning to the Leaf Village anyway" Sakumo inquired lightly as they all sat down for breakfast now that things were calm and not chaotic as they had been yesterday.

"Mm perhaps after the brat shows me whether or not she learned to actually master lightning based chakra, we'll pack up and hit the road" Tsunade glowered at the girl, who was probably just as if not more temperamental than her.

Sakura glanced in her direction then held up a piece of paper and after focusing for all of five minutes it crinkled "There you have it Tsunade-sama" there was no smugness to her tone and the piece of paper was thrown away along with the empty tray of her breakfast being returned.

"Crazy, just crazy, by the way you mentioned something about a bet yesterday, what did having to learn lightning based chakra have to do with it" Dan prodded carefully sensing that his lover was extremely irritated.

Tsunade glowered even more "Damn little brats how the hell did you learn that in just a week, it should have taken you at least two months, fine, fine whatever from this moment on your my apprentice" the honey eyed blonde scowled.

Jade irises lit up in response "Teme's gonna be so jealous when we get home" Naruto sniggered suddenly and Sakura turned her head his way trying to look stern but ended up cracking a smile in response because chances were the other member of their team would end up being jealous.

"Talking about that Sasuke boy on your team huh, ugh I'm just glad that the worst of all this is behind us" Jiraiya groaned suddenly looking about as exhausted as the rest of them felt minus the revivals that hadn't really fought.

At the name the raven haired male, who'd been aged like Nawaki had perked up "Sasuke as in Sasuke Uchiha right, that's my cousin, how do you two know him, I'm Shisui Uchiha and what about Itachi, Sasuke-chan's older brother" Shisui piped in.

The youngest girl at the table went rigid in response at the utterance of that name "Itachi Uchiha is a rogue criminal Shisui-san and if it weren't for Sakura there, your little cousin would have been killed by him" the Toad Sage said flatly.

Eyeing the girl who glared at the table "Wait a second we're talking about kind selfless and self sacrificing Itachi-chan, what the hell did he do to become a rogue criminal" the returned Uchiha, who would definitely turn the tide gaped.

"Slaughtered your entire clan Shisui-san except for Sasuke when we were all eight" Sakura murmured unable to meet the man's gaze after her last encounter with Itachi she hadn't dared separate herself from Naruto.

It worried her a little bit though were the two rogue's still snooping around or had they left, she hadn't seen them at all yesterday "What did he do to you Sakura, how did you manage to stop Itachi Uchiha of all people from killing his brother" Shizune was the one to ask.

Not having once thought that something horrific had happened to the girl, Tsunade's head snapped up "Did he rape you, when I was healing you I noticed that you weren't a virgin, your hymen had been broken" Tsunade jumped in looking furious.

Sakura reeled back in response as even Jiraiya froze they'd never been given an explanation as to what had happened in that room after all "Sakura-chan is that true" Naruto felt as if he couldn't breathe that something so terrible had happened.

Thankfully she shook her head "No he just roughed me around a little bit that's all, however the other thing…." the pinkette trailed off gazing in Kushina's direction, she nodded "I was eight and a man named Kan Kuki from the Grass Village shoved a kunai there trying to kill me" she finished.

Her heart dropped into her stomach "Is this true Kushina, if you were attached to her as a spirit" the older blue eyed blonde turned to his wife and lowered his voice to a whisper, Kushina nodded yet again.

"You can never know how guilty I felt being unable to help her like I wanted, there was only so much we as spirits could do by the way when we get back to the village after we tell Naruto, we'll be adopting someone, no arguing" Kushina said in a warning tone.

Minato eyed her a little warily but didn't argue as requested, though he was curious he didn't ask anymore questions "By the way what did Anija mean by no longer having to witness scenes that happen between you and a boy" Tobirama chose that moment to ask.

And once again her face turned beet red and Kushina knew what was coming as a finger was thrust in her direction "It's Kushina-chan's fault, she just had to push me that one time at Shino" Sakura huffed covering her face in the next second.

Kushina grinned sheepishly "Probably if I hadn't then all those adorable moments would have never happened you know" the violet eyed woman flushed red herself Minato chuckled as amusement filled the air.

"Just how many guys have you kissed Sakura-san" Sakumo questioned gently enjoying the conversation thus far and wanting to get to know the young girl who knew his son, she'd called Kakashi her sensei after all.

She cleared her throat "Technically I've only initiated a kiss on one, while one was the accident that Kushina-chan pushed me at and the other two kind of gave me no choice" the pinkette explained lightly.

Feeling a hand clutch hers beneath the table "Got a question how much of that destruction we saw in that clearing yesterday was yours sis" Nawaki piped in suddenly remembering the amount of destruction that littered the clearing.

"Probably less than half of it, got to hand it to you Sakura, but you have skills that could surpass mine in the future" Tsunade snorted eyeing her newest apprentice with an appraising look in her honey colored orbs.

The girl smiled sheepishly "I still have a long ways to go Tsunade-sama but I promise to train hard under your teachings and never complain no matter what happens" the emerald eyed Chunin vowed just happy that they would finally be going home.

And her first mission as a Chunin would be complete "Can I ask what two genin are doing on such a dangerous trip anyway" Shisui asked cluelessly and the youngest kunoichi in their midst slammed her head on the table with a loud thunk.

"Uh uh Sakura-chan's a Chunin Believe It and the whole reason we were out here was cause Pervy Sage asked me to come along and the Elders assigned Sakura-chan to the mission her first as a Chunin to bring back Granny Tsunade" Naruto announced in his usual exuberant tone.

Earning a fond smile "Right I guess this is it then, we're going back to the village, might as well start packing and gathering supplies for the trip" Shizune stood, followed by everyone else and they all headed back to the rooms they were staying in to pack up.

Jiraiya and Naruto immediately noticed that most of their things were already packed and knew instantly who the culprit was, not only that but the room was neat and tidy, with the beds made and not a single piece of trash littering the floor.

While the bathroom was absolutely spotless, so it took them less time to pack and head out to buy supplies for the return home trip before the lot of them made a break for the exit of Tanzaku Town ready to go home and take a good long relaxing break.

"Hey look Sakura-chan your hair is growing out, it's a little past your shoulder blades" the youngest blonde in the group exclaimed loudly picking up a strand of pink hair to eye it's length closely as they started walking.

Sakura did the same before nodding "Guess your right hmm I'm undecided now on whether to leave it a short length or let it grow out again" the only pink haired girl in the group frowned lightly letting the hair go to return to it's previous position.

It wasn't more than twenty minutes into their trek that the peace that had settled over them was broken "Now I've got you" and Naruto was jerked right off his feet and then was gone, everyone jolted even Jiraiya.

"That voice Sakura-chan it was Kan" Hashirama said and then the girl was gone off after her friend by the time the others caught up with them, Sakura had Naruto behind her and was fending off the attacker with a single tantou.

Like Hashirama had warned it was Kan Kuki the Grass Shinobi "Why are you always interfering with everything I do" Kan spat obviously enraged that he could never manage to get past the young girl who'd thwarted his plans time after time.

At the question she scowled and pulled out one of her scrolls, Naruto scrambled towards the others "Because Naruto and Karin are my friends and I won't allow you to touch them, Wind Summoning: Flower Scattering Dance, Katon: Fireball Jutsu" the scroll came unsealed followed by hand signs for a fire jutsu.

To launch a massive jutsu of two elements combined at Kan, who's skin paled upon seeing the fiery tornado spinning straight for him on a destructive path, he ducked and slammed to the ground as the jutsu flew overhead.

Kan leaped to his feet in the next moment and retreated hastily seeing that he was outnumbered and the girl would kill him if he gave her even half the chance to get in close range of him "Just you wait Haruno, I'll be back and you won't be able to protect your little friends next time" he warned, then was gone.

Sakura lowered her arms as she'd been preparing to set off another jutsu "Fire and Wind nice combo, when the hell did you seal that little jutsu in an elemental scroll" Jiraiya couldn't believe how talented the girl was.

Though he shouldn't be considering who'd been training her practically from the time she was able to learn "Oh that, I've had a wind jutsu sealed inside this scroll since the Chunin Exams, I had three prepared for my fight with Dosu" Sakura quipped.

Putting away her now empty jutsu scroll "Scary as ever Sakura-chan, I really thought you were gonna slaughter that guy" Naruto clutched onto her arm unwilling to be separated from her again as they started walking again with hopes that nothing else would happen until they got home.

"If he'd given her half a chance to there's no doubt in my mind she would have Naruto, you know" Kushina patted her son gently on the head, they still hadn't told him, but that was okay, Sakura would be there to help.

Naruto blinked at the verbal tick "W..Wait a second your just a kid, you don't have it in you to kill" Shisui burst out disbelieving that the young girl could kill much like the older members of the group, give her take a few.

"Funny the last person who said that got my tantou hilt deep in his chest, I'm not just a child as you put it Shisui-san, I'm a shinobi and I'm not afraid to kill to protect those that are important to me" the pinkette stated in a flat tone.

Shisui reeled back as if he'd received a punch to the gut "Yeah so we might have influenced Sakura-chan a little bit to much during her earlier years" Hashirama rubbed the back of his head sheepishly when soft red eyes shot his way.

"By the way sealing a jutsu that someone else created with their chakra does not mean you have that nature as well" Tsunade snorted suddenly now no longer believing that the young girl she'd taken on as her apprentice knew all five elements.

Emerald eyes turned her way "I made that jutsu myself, I just sealed it in the scroll so that I wouldn't expend to much chakra during my fight" the Chunin announced looking forward in the next moment and spreading out her senses.

The boy at her side nodded in agreement, he'd seen her use a few wind jutsu himself "How many natures do you know anyway Sakura-san" Minato inquired lightly keeping the conversation flowing between them.

Immediately she held up a hand with all five fingers spread "That's impossible your just a child" the Second Hokage scoffed in disbelief like his grand niece currently was, the girl was just a girl trained by his brother or not.

"I may not know any lightning jutsu yet, but you saw me use fire, this is Futon: Gale Palm Jutsu" Sakura sped through hand signs and set off a wind jutsu "Suiton: Water Shotgun Jutsu" more hand signs and another elemental jutsu, this time of water.

"And Doton: Rock Dagger Jutsu" came the last of earth elemental, just to clear up the air so that they would actually believe her and stop doubting her abilities, she'd trained hard and she wasn't going to let anyone tell her any different.

Hashirama snorted and Kushina grinned from ear to ear at the stunned silence that followed "Just how long did it take you to learn all that" Dan finally managed to ask, glancing around warily keeping on guard to avoid being started again like earlier.

"Yeah and why what would you need to learn all five chakra elements for" Nawaki jumped in not wanting to be left out of the conversation anymore, he had this feeling that he would be seeing a lot of this young girl and it was better to get to know her now rather than later.

Kushina sighed "To protect Naruto of course and all our other friends, plus to carry out my own dream which is to protect the future of the Leaf Village and all it's inhabitants" Sakura recited from heart the words she used daily to get her through to the end.

"You called my son your sensei is this true" Sakumo spoke up nearly an hour of silence later in which they'd walked straight through the second town that was only an hour away from Tanzaku Town, getting curious as he remembered yet again.

The two youngest members of the group nodded "That's right wait a second your Kakashi-sensei's dad boy are you gonna be surprised, he's almost as pervy as pervy sage" Naruto blurted out for everyone to hear.

Sakura let out a long suffering sigh at her teammates antics while trying not to crack up laughing herself "Naruto you should address him as Jiraiya-sama not th..that atrocious nickname" she managed to scold without looking seriously amused.

Minato creased his brow at the comment in confusion "Kakashi a pervert impossible right Kushina" the Fourth Hokage directed an imploring look at his wife, Kushina was staring at the ground avoiding his gaze.

"Unfortunately Naruto's right Lord Fourth, Kakashi-sensei is undeniably ahem that, but he reigns it in for the most part and is only like that when he reads MakeOut Tactics, which is basically all the time even when he's training us" Sakura answered with an apologetic smile.

Poor Lord Fourth he was going to be horribly shocked at his former student "Lord Fourth what are you talking about Sakura-chan, who are these guys anyway" the blonde at her side piped in just as cluelessly as usual.

And a tick formed on her forehead while Jiraiya groaned "Seriously Gaki you don't have a clue who any of these people are some future Hokage your going to be if you don't even know the former Hokage of the Leaf Village" the white haired Sannin shook his head.

The boy swung around bringing the group to a stop "So I was horrible at history and crap don't pick on me Pervy Sage I'll still be Hokage someday" Naruto pointed an accusing finger at his master, the vein on his teammates forehead bulged out even more.

Suddenly he froze and his skin paled feeling that angry chakra behind him, Naruto didn't dare turn his head to look at her instead started walking very quickly with the others following him, Sakura blew out a breath and relented with her chakra.

"Got that poor boy terrified of you don't you Sakura-san" Shizune snickered lightly now she knew who just who did the reigning in of the teammates on the team, Sakura sure had it tough but she definitely knew how to manipulate her chakra.

The girl in question smiled an innocent smile "That's more because of our academy days than anything else, Kushina-chan took over my body on the first day when a girl from my class tried to pick a fight with me, earned the nickname Pink Haired Demon" the pinkette laughed.

While Kushina whistled innocently "Because I refused to let you be bullied for that large adorable forehead of yours Sakura-chan you know" the violet eyed woman exclaimed with an all to wide grin as they continued to walk.

Clear up to lunch before deciding to take a break "Sakura-san come here for a moment" Sakumo called out when he and the young kunoichi were the first ones done, the others taking their sweet time eating the delicious ramen.

All eyes turned to him as Sakura stood from her relaxed position and walked over to the revived man "What is it Sakumo-san" Sakura asked once she was stood before him only to sit when he gestured for her to.

"Well I figured since you and the kid over there are two of Kakashi-kun's students you would know about my son quite a bit so I was hoping to drill you for information" the silver haired male chuckled lightly.

Sakura let a smile form "Unfortunately Kakashi-sensei hasn't really told us anything about himself in the least, we know his name, his nickname and some of his skills but none of his past, not even Kushina-chan would tell me, so I'm sorry" the pink haired Chunin apologized.

"It's true but we trust Kakashi-sensei with our lives cause he taught us the most important lesson of all to never abandon ones comrades even if means breaking the rules, I refuse to be scum after all" Naruto chimed in.

Before his expression of happiness faded as he oh so suddenly remembered that his sensei had been injured by Itachi Uchiha "How do you think Kakashi-sensei is doing anyway Sakura-chan, do you think he's still in the hospital" the blonde frowned deeply looking upset.

His teammate pinched the bridge of her nose "Your giving me whiplash with your constant change of emotions and I wouldn't know Naruto, I hate to admit it but the medics at the hospital are incompetent, the mental strain that Kakashi-sensei went through is probably beyond their healing capabilities" she rattled off.

"Mental strain, hospital, what are you talking about" Shisui questioned as they all packed up camp now that they were done eating and started walking again, Naruto was quiet, which was odd because he was about as exuberant as he was.

It was the girl who answered "Itachi used his Tsukuyomi on him Shisui-san, I'm sure you know what I'm talking about, but basically Kakashi-sensei was tortured inside his head for what seemed like seventy-two hours but was only minutes out here in the real world" Sakura explained.

"And that's what we were worried about when you were alone with him for nearly an hour girl, are you sure he didn't use that on you as well" Jiraiya jumped in trying to get her to admit that something else had happened.

Emerald orbs shot his way "I'm sure, plus I didn't dare look him in the eyes and then Kan showed up and it wasn't long after that, that he and Kisame Hoshigaki left" the pink haired Chunin said lightly spreading out her senses to make sure they weren't being followed.

Kushina and Hashirama were quiet during that conversation and it suddenly occurred to nearly everyone that both had been present "We aren't talking about it so don't ask" Hashirama was quick to say before anyone could ask.

"Quite I think Sakura-chan has been through enough on our behalf anyway" Kushina nodded just as a familiar chakra to only a few of them flared to life behind them followed by a huge ass sword which caused all of them to hit the dirt.

Sakura's eye twitched and that tick formed on her forehead "Zabuza what the hell was that for you jerk" she growled regardless of being healed by Tsunade, she was still extremely sore and that had hurt like freaking hell.

"A rogue from the Hidden Mist Village" Shisui didn't think, didn't ask questions just attacked, Sakura swore her heart was going to stop as she pushed herself to her feet and tackled the Uchiha, more like tripped on the Uchiha actually, mere inches away from Zabuza.

Everyone froze "If you know what's good for you Shisui-san you will never do that again, Zabuza is a friend of ours and regardless of being a rogue, he has immunity from his country, for taking out a major thorn in their side and protecting the other islands in Water Country" Sakura said.

Naruto slid to the ground on his butt letting out a loud sigh of relief that nothing bad had happened "Did you just trip" Tsunade blinked at her young apprentice as the duo stood, Shisui looking pretty guilty and headed back towards them with the rogue on their heels.

Sakura sported a sour expression at the comment "I have innate clumsiness and often trip, it's not something I can get rid of on my own" she huffed turning a glower on Zabuza, who merely raised an ebony brow at her in response, sword attached to his back again.

"That was for the time before when you pushed me out of the bloody tree and to make sure your keeping your guard raised, plus you never came back Haku was worried" Zabuza admitted, at the statement though Sakura slapped a hand over her mouth trying vainly not to laugh.

While Kushina looked clear in the other direction "Um actually Zabuza-san that was Kushina-san who pushed you from your tree on your first meeting, we were ghosts that followed Sakura around" Hashirama cleared his throat pointing to the fiery red haired woman.

Zabuza turned sharply almost outright gaping at the admission "It was them that helped you escape from me wasn't it brat" his brow twitched and an angry tick formed on his forehead, outwitted by a child how humiliating.

"By the way the reason we haven't come back yet is one it took us forever to find Tsunade-sama and two she made a bet with us, so that took an extra week longer making it over a month we've been on this mission, and kind of" Sakura rolled her eyes lightly.

Remembering the mischief they'd caused "Could we maybe you know start walking again I would like to see my village for the first time in a long, long time" Tobirama cleared his throat trying to move the group along.

As another person joined them "What do you mean by kind of Sakura-chan, why exactly were those guys stuck to you as ghosts anyway and not me cause I'm awesome you know" Naruto prodded boasting about his awesomeness.

Sakura snorted in response "Knucklehead if it had been you, you'd have blurted the secret out for the entire village to hear and probably be thrown in a jail cell and get called crazy" the pinkette stated wisely, Hashirama nodded in response.

Naruto tilted his head to the side looked three of the males in their group over and it hit him then "Sakura-chan why does he look like me and why does she say you know, like me you know" the blonde frowned pointing to the duo walking together.

Kushina grew tense immediately in response and Sakura glanced at said duo to get permission "Because Naruto their your parents and Jiraiya-sama over there is your godfather" she smiled gently and held out her hand which was instantly clutched onto.

It was a shocker no doubt and Naruto was quiet trying to work through the recent admissions he'd been told which in turn kept everyone else silent as well allowing him the needed time to think over everything before deciding on what he wanted to do.

"B..But what about Karin-chan it's not fair Sakura-chan that I get them back and Karin-chan will be on her own again" the blue eyed boy finally spoke nearly a full thirty minutes later and the first thing out of his mouth was concern for his cousin, distant sure but family nonetheless.

His mother was quick to assure him on that front "We're going to adopt her Naruto-kun, kami how long I've waited to do this you'll never know you know" Kushina swept her son into her arms and gave him the biggest bone crushing hug she could manage without hurting him.

Sakura's heart gave a little jolt at the heartwarming scene because all she'd wanted for Naruto was his happiness "We are…I mean we are though I'm not sure who Karin-san is" Minato ruffled his now twelve year old son's hair.

"Uzumaki Karin, Naruto and her are actually distant cousins, she has red hair and red eyes like Lord Second, maybe just a tinge brighter" Sakura explained with ease trying not to cry knowing how much her friend had always wanted to meet his parents and now he was.

It had been agonizing not spilling the secret about being able to see his mother as a ghost "And she's probably gonna take your place on the team until the rest of them become Chunin" Zabuza spoke up glancing over his shoulder to make sure they weren't being followed.

The main reason he had been out searching wasn't only because of Haku, but the Mizukage had been in the area to take care of business and place a Lord in the Land of Waves, so he'd left to avoid having a meeting with the woman regardless of having immunity.

"Logical tell me Sakura-san do you know if Kakashi has a girlfriend" Sakumo was once again on the subject of his son, who'd already told him outright she didn't know anything about her sensei beyond his name, nickname and a few skills and that he liked to read pervy books.

She blinked at him "Er I wouldn't have a clue, he's never even given a hint that there's someone he likes let alone to us his students, who on the very first day outright said he hated us and then put us through hell during training sessions" the pinkette quipped.

"What kind of sensei says they hate their students on the very first day" Shisui snorted and got a shrug from the two youngest members of their group, they didn't know either so there was no answer to be heard.

"He's changed a lot Minato, though if it hadn't been for Kakashi-kun, Sakura-chan would have died when she was eight during that incident with the Grass Shinobi" Kushina chimed in and Tsunade perked up her ears to hear more.

Sakura sighed "What she means is Kakashi-sensei is the one who found me when I was bleeding to death after trying to sneak away from my kidnappers with Karin, who I thought for over four years was dead" she admitted.

They were all quiet at that "Have another question what would Grass Shinobi want with two eight year old girls anyway" Nawaki inquired trying to piece together everything that they were being told, but was still extremely confused.

Jade orbs shot his way before shifting to Kushina who looked outright furious "Kan Kuki saw us practicing medical ninjutsu together, though Karin had previously run away from her own village and they wanted her back for her abilities, if you bite her and suck out her chakra you can be healed and they were taking advantage of that" Sakura said.

Her own hands tightened around the lapels of her backpack as her mind chose that moment to dredge up the image of those countless bite mark scars on her friends flesh "That's terrible, how could they be so cruel to a child" Shizune gasped in horror.

"The Grass Village is severely behind the times and try to relive the glory days by constantly starting wars with other shinobi villages, her mother had the same ability and they sucked her dry of chakra, Karin told me" the younger kunoichi stated.

More silence until "Please tell me that they can't get to her anymore" Dan was just as horrified as his niece to know what went on while he was dead, he just hoped that someone had found a way to put a stop to the grass shinobi from taking the girl again.

Naruto was the one to answer "Their still after her but the Leader knows what will happen if they do take Karin-chan, thanks to Old Man Hokage invoking the Uzumaki Law, where no Uzumaki child is to be harmed" the blonde exclaimed wisely.

"And here I thought you were nothing more than a knucklehead without a brain in that noggin of yours" Jiraiya snorted humorously teasing his little godson/apprentice and the boy shrugged rubbing the back of his head sporting a sheepish whiskered grin.

"He's not so bad Jiraiya-sama, well not as bad as he use to be, I think all the studying I made him do during our academy days when we weren't pranking someone or skipping classes fried his brain" Sakura snickered mercilessly teasing her friend.

Who turned beet red in response and puffed up his cheeks at her at the continued teasing he was getting "Stop picking on me Sakura-chan, I know I'm not the smartest person in the world, can't all have brains like you and that lazy ass after all, but I still know a few things" he huffed.

Sakura giggled and linked arms with the boy emerald eyes twinkling with her mischief as they continued walking further down the path that lead to home "Before you ask Tobirama, he's referring to Hiruzen" the brunette in their midst announced.

Immediately both young shinobi got depressed "Okay what is it with you two now, are you seriously still mourning the loss of the Third Hokage" Zabuza groaned, why, why did it just have to be those brats that could tear at his heartstrings.

"Yeah just what was he to you two anyway" Tsunade frowned still not understanding about the two brats that had come to find her with her old teammate, simply put they were a conundrum and she wanted to figure them.

The girl sighed "Lord Third was quite indulgent on a lot of things towards the youth of the village i.e Naruto and myself and whoever came to visit him at the Hokage Tower, if you had a question, you could go to him and he'd answer it, that's where I spent most of my academy days" she admitted.

"Me to and Old Man treated me like family plus he never ratted us out to Iruka-sensei when we skipped" the boy grinned from ear to ear trying to remember the good old days, it would just have to do and be enough because those memories are all they had now.

Eventually the lot of them had to stop for dinner and not long after they ate, everyone settled down in a bedroll thank kami for Sakura's insight to get some shut eye, never knowing that trouble was headed their way.

And it hit just after they'd finished eating breakfast the next morning and were preparing to set out, he just strolled casually from the treeline decked out in the Akatsuki Cloak, piercings all over his face, purple ringed eyes and to top it all off a head of bright orange hair.

Sakura lunged to stand in front of Naruto blocking him from the strangers sight since she was slightly taller "Have no fear Sakura Haruno, I have not come for Naruto Uzumaki today" he spoke in a deep voice and dread pooled in her stomach.

As they others waited patiently for whatever it was he had to say or what his business was "Instead I have come for you, Itachi has told me of your capabilities and you could become strong, much stronger than Tsunade Senju if you were to come with me to the Akatsuki" he offered.

Her heart skipped a beat in fear "N..No absolutely not never would I betray Naruto or the Leaf Village to work with that no good organization of criminals" Sakura straightened not an ounce of emotion on her face nor a hint of fear in her voice, despite that light stutter.

"Pity and here I was hoping for a peaceful outcome you sure you won't change your mind" the orange haired male asked and she shook her head "Very well then, you'll die here today farewell Sakura Haruno" then he was gone.

Out of the forest came twenty bandits "Kami brat just can't stay out of trouble can you" Zabuza threw his Kubikiribocho as Sakura threw herself and Naruto to the ground so the sword could fly over their heads and slam straight through a couple of the bandits.

Before pushing themselves to their feet "Don't just stand there brat, I know you can fight" Tsunade barked dashing by with her assistant on her heels, Sakura drew back her fist and snapped it to the earth, which shattered upon impact.

"Scary as ever Sakura-chan, I think I'll just stay by Pervy Sage" Naruto gulped inching backwards towards his godfather as he now knew the man to be as she struck out with her foot and kicked a bandit to send him flying off into the tree's.

Where he was impaled by a branch, though it didn't kill him, he was down for the count seconds after he was taken out by Shisui "Good aim guess you weren't kidding huh about being able to kill" Shisui grimaced.

Wincing slightly as a tantou pierced through bone and flesh to poke out through a chest courtesy of the young girl, who ducked immediately afterwards and struck out with her fist, eyes fierce and full of her determination, her will of fire to not lose in order to keep protecting Naruto.

"Careful Sakura-chan a couple of them are grass shinobi" Kushina warned spying a glint of metal and the familiar symbol, Sakura jolted and shot towards Shisui speeding through a set of hand signs as she spied the headband around the supposed bandits arms.

Shisui blinked "Doton: Mud wall" the pinkette slammed her hands to the ground before him just as the body exploded "Those guys place exploding tags in their body that go off a few minutes after they die" she warned then leaped back into the fray with the others.

"Nice one Sakura-san did my son teach you that jutsu, I know he has earth nature after all" Sakumo was stood at her side in the next second, Sakura shook her head and pointed to the First Hokage, who had just used his wood element to strangle an enemy.

Before wrapping the beams around his entire body as it exploded "Insanity why do they place exploding tags inside their bodies, Suiton: Explosive Bite of the Water Dragon" Tobirama sped through the hand signs of one of his favorite jutsu.

"Tobirama your to much sometimes and no doubt their hoping to catch Sakura of guard in the future with their stupidity, the terrain has changed everyone switch to water walking" Hashirama ordered, the lot of them gathered chakra to their feet.

As a wave of water swept through the area they were fighting in "SIS I NEED A LITTLE HELP" Nawaki shouted in the next moment as three bandits ganged up on him, he'd never learned to water walk, nor had he ever killed, though he was older, his mentality was that of a twelve year old.

Sakura launched forward focusing chakra into her hands and body flickered at the last second mid hand stand in front of Nawaki and kicked one bandit in the chest with a loud bone crushing crack that sent him flying backwards "Three against one is never fun, Suiton: Raging Waves" Sakura laughed.

Taking out the second bandit, which left only one, that was immediately taken care of by Dan "Thank you Sakura-san" Dan nodded as she charged forward tantou raised and fist held out, before turning to spy the older blue eyed blonde.

Looking extremely frustrated "Watch out Sakura don't get distracted" Shizune flung senbon at an enemy that got to close as she was stretching her hand out to punch him, she nodded her head then pulled out the seals she knew she was probably never going to use.

And hurriedly wrapped them around her regular kunai "Lord Fourth here" the pink haired emerald eyed Chunin body flickered to the man's side, handed over the three kunai and then was gone flashing forward to catch a bandit in the shin with a kick.

"Much better how did you know though" Minato immediately set to work taking out a few bandits with his newly acquired kunai, he could have used rasengan, but he didn't want to scare his son to much and plus they were all learning.

That just because they were revived didn't mean they were battle ready, they would have to train hard in order to regain that which they lost in the revival "You're the Yellow Flash Lord Fourth, plus Naruto gets frustrated to when he can't figure out what to do" Sakura smiled lightly.

Focusing lightning based chakra into her hand just a little bit and tapping an enemy that shocked him and he fell to the ground as the water finally receded "I think that's the last of them" Jiraiya commented as the fighting died down and the remaining bandits were taken care of.

Dripping wet sure and not without injuries, but none of them died or were seriously hurt by the bandits as the four medics in the clearing went about healing the others in their company before hurriedly walking forward leaving the scene behind so that they could hopefully get home.

Within the next several hours hopefully "Why are you so scary sometimes Sakura-chan" the youngest blonde in the group clutched onto his friend's hand again asking what he thought was a serious question, only to get laughed at.

Sakura shook her head lightly in amusement "Well I think your mother might have rubbed on me quite a bit, you know that thing I do with chakra, the one that earned me that nickname, Kushina-chan was the one who taught me that in order to keep you from getting into trouble" the pinkette snickered.

Naruto puffed up his cheeks and huffed in exasperation pouting and sulking in the way all young boys knew how to even though they called it brooding "No wonder you seem good at reigning your teammates in, their terrified of you thanks to Kushina" the white haired Sannin chuckled.

And the girl nodded with a grin as Naruto continued sulking for the better part of five minutes "How much further do you think we have to walk, I'm getting tired and just want to be home" the straw blonde haired teen asked with a sigh.

Tsunade turned to eye her little brother in the end they were returned to her but not by means she thought possible "Just a few more hours probably a little after lunch Nawaki and then we'll be back at the Leaf Village" the honey eyed blonde assured.

Feeling the happiest she had in years "Though something does bug me how come you seemed reluctant to go home until now and what's going to happen once we get back" the pale blue haired male caught up with his lover in the next moment to ask his question.

"The Elders decided to name Tsunade-sama as the Fifth Hokage Uncle" the ebony haired woman admitted quietly giving the rest of them something to think about for a good twenty minutes because undoubtedly things were going to be complicated once they got home.

Kushina frowned and eyed her husband wondering what he was thinking "Unless you want to take back over your position" the violet eyed woman lowered her voice to a whisper hoping that wasn't the case because she'd missed all these years with her two favorite boys.

Minato's head snapped in her direction "I think that's past me Kushina, plus I don't want to miss out on anymore time with Naruto" the Fourth Hokage shook his head making a decision that would benefit his family the most so he could be part of their world.

"Was it easy for you to learn water nature chakra, I couldn't help but notice you were more in tune with your water element than say earth" the tall silver haired male who was almost an exact replica of Kakashi, baring a few differences asked suddenly of the youngest kunoichi.

Her head craned around to spy him "Natural, I had two elements to begin with earth and water, but your right Sakumo-san I'm partial to my water element and water jutsu's come easiest for me" she nodded answering his question.

Tobirama chuckled "Earlier you were talking about a nickname during the academy pink something or other was it" the snowy haired Second Hokage prodded curiously, Kushina grinned suddenly and started laughing.

While Sakura sighed "Pink Haired Demon, that's more because of Kushina, any time someone picked on me or bullied me, she would take control of my body and punch that person with a shriek of you know, hence the nickname" the pink haired girl shook her head lightly.

"Indeed though it mostly kept Sakura from making friends until Kushina caught sight of Naruto transferring into her class and immediately demanded Sakura be friends with him" the brunette piped in making sure he was far away from the woman herself in order to avoid being whacked.

Shisui frowned lightly "Looks like something's eating you Uchiha care to share" the rogue from Mist that was trailing behind them just a little bit spoke up and all eyes turned to Shisui who was still frowning.

"Something just doesn't make sense to me though, the Itachi I know would never be able to betray his village nor kill his entire clan unless that was his only choice and someone ordered him to do it" the raven haired male frowned.

A flicker of emotion appeared in the emerald depths of the girl his cousin was on a team with, while Hashirama and Kushina turned their heads away, Sakura didn't outright know what was going on but the two former ghosts might possibly know.

But no more questions came forth and they walked for a couple more hours before sitting down to eat lunch, packed up camp and continued forward, it was a little later than Tsunade had estimated and night had fallen over them.

When the enlarged group finally reached the red wrought iron gates of the Hidden Leaf Village and who would be stood there waiting for them none other than Kakashi Hatake, and in his hands was that dumb little orange book.

"K..Kakashi-sensei your okay, your okay" Naruto was the first one to lunge at his sensei nearly knocking the man over, keen emerald orbs picked up on the sluggish response, Kakashi wasn't okay in the least.

Her brow twitched "Baka-sensei if your struggling that much then maybe it would have been better if you'd stayed in the hospital" Sakura huffed watching how heavily the man leaned against the gate to their village just to stay on his feet.

At the comment he chuckled sheepishly "I had to greet my two cute little students coming home from a month long mission, how was I supposed to do that from the hospital Sakura-chan" Kakashi crinkled his eye at her, mask bunching up at the corners as he smiled.

While reaching to ruffle her growing hair "You could have waited until tomorrow Hatake there was no need to push yourself until I could heal you" Tsunade rolled her eyes with a snort watching the interactions with a fond gleam in her honey orbs.

Kakashi's lone onyx eye met her gaze evenly "Perhaps Tsunade-sama but these two are such troublemakers I had to make sure they were doing alright and not being brought home with countless injuries" the silver haired nin chuckled.

Sakura itched to whack him and a tick formed on her forehead before letting out a long suffering sigh before shifting her gaze to Tsunade who nodded and waved her off "Consider your first B Rank Mission complete, take a two week break now scram" the honey eyed woman barked.

The girl grinned and marched forward "Come on Naruto, let's help sensei back to the hospital, no doubt the medics are very upset with you for sneaking out" the pinkette grinned from ear to ear and with that the three members of team seven vanished down the darkened streets.

As the rest of them split up to find a place to stay for the night until the next morning when things could be dealt with, with a clear head in an organized manner hopefully, but that was for another day as they settled down in their chosen places for a good night's sleep, no telling what the next day would bring them after all.


	18. Break Continued (Part 3)

First thing she noticed upon waking the next morning was that the house was completely and utterly devoid of life except for herself and could easily deduce three things, one her parents were off on a trip, two Karin must have went to Sasuke's and three her constant ghostly companions were no longer ghosts.

Sakura sighed and took a nice long relaxing shower before making breakfast, she was almost finished when the air shifted next to her followed by the familiar anbu "Lady Hokage requests your presence once you've finished eating Haruno-san" he explained the reason for his visit.

"I understand Anbu-san, just let me drop the dishes off in the sink then we can go" Sakura nodded stuffing the last bite of her egg sandwich into her mouth, drained her coffee, she'd sorely needed it, then collected all the dishes in her arms to place them in the sink.

Before turning to face the Anbu, he pressed his hand to her shoulder and body flickered them to the Hokage Tower more to the point, the Hokage's Office, where everyone was gathered "Should have known you'd be up and about early" Hashirama shook his head.

Then straightened as his granddaughter cleared her throat looking sheepish, his younger brother shook his head "Right so where are going to live, can we activate our vaults or are those no longer in existence" Tobirama questioned.

Once he realized that they were all in fact there "Your vaults are still in existence and I've already requested that they be opened, where you live is up to you after a few hours of paperwork that I'm speeding through" Tsunade spoke.

And turned honey eyes on her newest apprentice "I know I told you to take a two week break, I still need you to do a few things as of this moment on you work at the hospital when you don't have missions, take this to the current head medic" the pale blonde woman explained.

The happiness that sparked in the young girls eyes and spread across her features was not something she was expecting "Right away Tsunade-shishou" the pinkette exclaimed exuberantly, took the note and scrambled from the office.

"She's been gunning for a job at the hospital since she was eight but the medics refused her even after she proved more capable than the whole lot of them" Kushina admitted a twinkle of fondness for the pink haired girl in her violet orbs.

Hashirama nodded sagely in agreement "Adorable don't you think so Tsunade, tell me something is she an orphan" Dan chuckled lightly until something occurred to him and he turned to the two who would know more about the girl than anyone else in the room.

Both former spirits shook their heads "No but they went off on trips often leaving her alone once she got old enough to take care of herself, plus she had us" the brunette grinned gesturing to Kushina who shrugged lightly.

"Alone without a sitter what kind of parents, regardless of having two spirits that they probably didn't know about following their daughter around, are they" Shisui gaped not liking what he was hearing in the least.

Kushina turned sharply "Careful Shisui-san, Sakura-chan adores her parents, they are very nice people and apologized every time they had to go off to get income for the bills" the red haired woman said in a light tone.

Shisui took a couple wary steps away from her "That's right plus after the incident with the Grass Village when she was eight, there was always an anbu guard hanging around, myself she doesn't remember me in the least though" the anbu who had brought Sakura spoke.

Moving his mask to the side to reveal his features "Was it really Kakashi who found her when that happened and what is your name" Sakumo questioned turning to face the man to get the answers he sought.

Obsidian orbs traveled in the newly inducted Hokage's direction and she gave him a nod of permission "Yes, I was also one of the ones who found young Sakura-san and my real name I've forgotten but I go by Tenzo" Tenzo introduced himself properly.

"Ho..How bad was her condition when you found her, did they really do something despicable like she told us" Nawaki asked a couple moments later when silence filled the office and he wanted to learn more about the girl.

Tenzo's features darkened in response "An hour was all she had left to live when we found her and yes it was horrific, all I'll say is that those screams of denial when she was told were enough to haunt even me" the brunette grimaced shifting his mask back over his face.

"Right well Milady has plenty of things to get through so your free to go about the rest of the morning however you wish" Shizune piped in bowing her head low as she dismissed everyone in the office for her mentor.

Immediately the lot of them traipsed out the door and down into the streets on their own now "Where would that girl most likely be" the snowy haired Second Hokage cleared his throat looking to his older brother seconds afterwards.

Who chuckled in response "Either the hospital, the training grounds or pestering Sasuke-san, or perhaps she's at home with Karin, kami it's so weird" Hashirama rubbed his forehead, never again would things be the same for him.

Violet eyes filled with an understanding light "Yeah way to weird I'm so use to following around Sakura-chan day in and day out" Kushina laughed sheepishly as they headed for the Haruno House, which was as empty as she thought it would be.

It was about that time of the month "Her parents are off on one of those trips you mentioned, who does she stay with nowadays" the Uchiha creased his brow in concern it really wasn't right to make a young girl stay on her own.

Kushina shook her head "So if she's not here, then let us go to where the Uchiha on her team lives" the pale blue haired male with dark forest green eyes clapped his hands, as much as he was enjoying the walk through his village, he wanted someone who had physically walked the streets leading him around.

Suddenly both Kushina and Hashirama shared a look "She's not inside the village is she" Minato saw the look not even bothered, he knew that his wife would never cheat on him even as a ghost attached to a little girl with a male that happened to be their first Hokage.

"What the bloody well would she not be in the village for, regardless of whether or not she's capable of fighting, she shouldn't leave not with that orange haired guy skulking around" the silver haired male burst out speeding for the gates.

The red haired woman let out a long suffering sigh "It's not what he thinks is it Kushina, I kind of get the feeling he's fond of her, because his son is her sensei" the blue eyed blonde chuckled lightly as they hurried after the panicking man.

Once again she shook her head "No you saw him that reanimated shinobi right that Sakura was fighting" the Uzumaki woman questioned earning nods "He sacrificed his life for her and with permission from the elders made a grave for him just a few feet outside the village" she said.

When they reached the spot they found Sakumo, Kakashi and Sakura standing around trying vainly not to crack up laughing since they were in front of a grave "Tsunade-sama paid me a visit this morning" Kakashi explained his presence there and why he wasn't in the hospital.

"Not to mention I'm avoiding Sasuke, he's in quite the snit about Sakura-chan asking me to teach her a lightning jutsu right in front of him" the younger silver haired shinobi with mismatched eyes chuckled not bothered in the least.

Even as an angry tick formed on his sole female students forehead and she snorted "Such a child he really needs to learn to share" Sakura scoffed rolling her eyes as a scowl formed on her lips and she crossed her arms over her chest.

Said Uchiha's cousin shook his head "Looks like he still needs to do a lot of growing up then, don't worry, I'll straighten him out" Shisui saluted then after getting a lock on the somewhat familiar chakra body flickered off to talk to Sasuke.

"You have another grave your going to visit, or are those flowers for that one" the straw blonde teenager questioned pointing to the sack, the angry tick went away and Sakura turned to hurriedly place down the flowers.

Which emptied the plastic bag, that was promptly set on fire so as not to litter "So what do you like to do for fun Sakura-san" Dan inquired as they headed back through the gates to wander randomly around the village just immersing themselves in the village.

Her sensei rolled his lone onyx eye "Train of course Dan-san and study to keep up with politics and whatnot plus I love to cook and clean and lots of other things to" the pinkette rattled off without even thinking about her answer.

Utter silence was the response "That's Sakura-chan in a nutshell, though now I know where that verbal tick came from" the Copy Ninja stated reading from his book, not really it was just something to keep his hands from fidgeting about.

And he did so enjoy irritating the hell out of his cute little students, even if one of them was no longer a genin, Kushina grinned and whistled innocently in response as they reached the training grounds in time to hear the tail end of a rant.

"I just don't understand Shisui, Naruto and I are the ones from a clan background and then Sakura, she's not even from a clan, her parents are practically civilians and yet she's stronger it's not fair" Sasuke was pacing madly flinging his arms about ranting like crazy.

Zabuza, Haku, Naruto and Karin were stood off to the side, they plus Shisui noticed the others arrivals and Sakura's suddenly pissed off expression as she stalked forward intent on ending this conversation one way or another.

Kakashi sighed "You know Sasuke, that sounds eerily like something Neji would say and do you know how much that pisses me off, it's basically saying I'm not good enough to be a ninja" the pink haired Chunin snapped from behind him.

Sasuke froze in response, skin paling and sweat beading on his face as he turned slowly to face his teammate "Th..That's not what I mean Haruno, it's you're a girl and girls aren't supposed to be stronger than males cause your more delicate and need to be protected" the ebony haired teen said.

"Uh oh that was the worst possible thing Sasuke could have said" Kakashi winced as anger became palpable in the air, and the temperature dropped by several degree making it cold in the clearing as fury sparked in his lone female student's jade irises.

Her teeth ground audibly "Let's get one thing straight Uchiha yes I am a girl but by no means am I delicate nor need to be protected, I know my limits, I know how to rely on people, so don't you ever judge a girl again because they can be just as if not stronger than a male" the pinkette glared.

Punching the ground "If anything she's gotten scarier since she's been gone" Karin gulped keeping glued to her distant cousin's side eyeing the amount of destruction a single punch from her friend had created.

Throwing Sasuke off balance and straight into the lake, Naruto nodded sagely "A lot of things happened Karin-chan, we've come back a little different" Naruto kept his baby blue eyes on his best friend as she glided forward gracefully and dove into the lake after their other teammate.

Who was a complete and utter idiot "Your mean Sakura" Sasuke gasped for air as they breached the surface and climbed onto solid dry land together, the pink haired girl turned, emerald eyes piercing straight through him.

"Mean really Sasuke, stop being such a child, every single time we've been through something I've taken the hits for you have you forgotten what I did for you not more than a month ago or how about the time you were so depressed in the academy and all those girls wouldn't leave you alone, that was me who scared them off" Sakura spat.

Sasuke's skin paled in response "It's true Teme and Sakura-chan took the heat for you, for so long, she took the heat for all of us misfits in the academy yet she never got anything back for it" the blonde on the team came forward with Karin.

"And me, I wouldn't be here if it weren't for Sakura-chan, who sacrificed nearly all of her break from the get go to find the Uzumaki Law so my old village would stop coming after me" the young ruby eyed girl piped in quietly.

By that point it was finally registering in his brain "Why are you so bloody selfless, why go that far for me, we hardly get along, I'm always fighting with you it's not fa…gahhhhh" the Uchiha grumbled before letting out a choked noise as he was punched in the stomach.

To land in the lake once more, Sakura tapped her foot impatiently "How many more times do I have to put you in that lake before you understand you idiot, first thing I am not selfless, second we're teammates, third that's what rivalry is all about, fourth nothing in this world is fair" the pinkette stated bluntly.

"Is this how it always is with those two" Sakumo couldn't believe his eyes, she was really laying into the poor boy, Kakashi nodded with a long suffering sigh, it had been like that all month long, why hadn't he been selected to go on the mission, why did the sole female on their team have to be so self sacrificing.

He just hoped that Sakura didn't strangle the boy "Tell me then why the hell you….you willingly let my brother do whatever he wanted to you when I could have stopped him right then and there" Sasuke snapped glaring angrily.

She blew out an aggravated breath without saying anything this time simply punched and waited until he was on dry land again "Get it through your bloody head, time after time Sasuke you've blamed me for carrying all of my burdens myself" Sakura started.

"When you know very well you have no room to freaking talk, you shoved everyone away, kept everyone at a distance of yourself and if you had tried to attack Itachi, both of us would be dead and Naruto would have been taken, hell Kakashi-sensei could have died to, the end of Team Seven" she finished.

Finally everything he was being told was sinking in to his thick pigheaded brain, Sasuke turned on his heel and disappeared without another word "That was something else Sakura-san, I'm sure though you got through to him unlike me" Shisui spoke up in the ensuing silence.

Sakura sighed "I'm just tired of his crap, while teammate rivalry is a good thing, he finds things to argue with me about that just piss me off to no end and I sure hope so, cause next time I'm gonna put him in the hospital and hope he finally understands then" she said flatly.

Making Shisui pale in response "Why are you so serious about everything Sakura-chan, like our first meeting I didn't think you'd get that worked up over a little comment I made jokingly and try to punch me" Kakashi gave her the oddest look he could manage.

His sole female student turned giving him a wide eyed look apparently word hadn't gotten around just yet "Th..That was Kushina-chan actually Kakashi-sensei, you were told weren't you" Sakura bit her lip harshly trying not to crack up laughing.

Her poor sensei was about to be mind blown as he paused recounted his conversation from that morning when Tsunade was healing him when it clicked he nearly dropped his book "Wait a second how could it have been Kushina-san who was a spirit" Tobirama was definitely confused.

"Ah they could take over my body and control me and when Kakashi-sensei said he hated us mere seconds after meeting us, Kushina-chan kind of went, lets just say it was hard gaining control back because she was furious at you Kakashi-sensei and be lucky I sucked back then" the young girl snorted.

Answering Tobirama's question all in one go in a polite tone that not everyone would use anymore "But you could have also been seriously hurt" Hashirama stated wisely, he had mostly stayed out of things and had hardly ever commanded control of Sakura unless teaching her.

Sakura nodded seriously "For what it's worth I am sorry but not I just didn't like how much you'd changed and joke or not you should never say you hate your students" Kushina huffed, she did feel guilty over that.

Earning a small smile from the girl in question "Guess what Sakura" Haku chose that moment to appear at Sakura's side and Hashirama instantly turned while Naruto and Kakashi did the same thing causing Karin and Kushina to crack up laughing in response.

"What is it Haku" the pinkette dutifully turned to talk to the fifteen year old, no one could say she didn't give them every ounce of her attention after all when they were talking to her and she wouldn't give anyone any reason to say that she didn't.

Haku's doe brown orbs were lit up with happiness and the content of life "Go on boy tell her stop dragging things out, then we need to be on our way before she gets irritated" Zabuza rolled his eyes at his apprentice.

Who nodded "Right so Zabuza and Tsunami-san are getting married, she's pregnant with a baby and their both going to adopt me isn't that exciting Sakura so Inari is going to be my little brother" the raven haired teen burst out enthusiastically.

Emerald orbs softened "Very exciting Haku, ooh that's right hang on I've got something for them picked them up as souvenirs and a letter, I'll probably visit in a few days or so but could you warn them" Sakura smiled brightly handing over the letter.

Because she wanted to give the souvenirs to the small family herself "We can do that come on now boy" the rogue from mist chuckled and as he was passing by ruffled the girls pink hair into an un-repairable state, then both males were gone.

"Okay I think we should take care of things while we're here, Naruto could you come here and uh bring Karin-san with you" Minato called out deciding it was better to get the adoption process started, his boys baby blue eyes lit up and tugging along the young red haired girl hurried over.

Karin as he learned was very shy and upon nearing grabbed hold of Sakura and hid behind her "It's okay Karin this is my Dad you know I told you about him and my Mom last night they want to adopt you" Naruto soothed.

Ruby eyes widened in response and she peeked around her friend a glint of curiosity, hope and fear all shining through those eyes "Bu..But what about my you aren't gonna make me use it are you" the red haired girl clutched her friend all the tighter waiting for an answer.

Minato blinked trying to figure out what the girl was talking about "Of course not Karin, that is your choice to use it if you want to and no one is going to force you to use your healing ability" Kushina was quick on the uptake of course.

Just as it hit him "Kushina is right Karin we wouldn't be so cruel, couldn't be actually so what do you say do you want to be adopted by us" the Fourth Hokage offered smiling an easy going smile, it would take a lot of work, but the four of them would be happy as a family he was sure of it.

"And we'll still get to be friends with Sakura-chan and Teme and Gaara and everyone else we're friends with to Karin" the younger blonde blurted staring at his distant cousin hopefully, this was the best thing to ever happen.

It was quiet for a few minutes longer "Okay I'd like to be part of a family again so yes" the Uzumaki girl exclaimed and got her hair ruffled in response, because this was huge and she'd just made a decision that would effect her for all time.

"Then let's go and get this all done and we can check in and see if our vaults have been opened up and find a nice big house to all live in you know" the older red haired violet eyed woman grinned and with that the new family of four traipsed off.

Sakura watched them go with the fondest smile until they were out of sight "You said you wanted to learn a lightning jutsu Sakura-chan" the younger silver haired nin in the clearing cleared his throat drawing her attention onto himself.

Her lips pursed in thought "Maybe not right now Kakashi-sensei I'm going to make use of my break this time, plus I have to clean the house to and stock the cabinets" the pink haired Chunin said lightly looking tired.

All of last month was catching up with her "By the way why did you two turn when that boy approached" Sakumo inquired suddenly gesturing to his son and the First Hokage, while the now lone girl on the field blushed.

"That's because Haku has a habit of kissing her randomly" Kakashi coughed avoiding the amused jade eyes of his female student and shifting awkwardly while Hashirama chuckled sheepishly and shook his head.

Sakumo chuckled in amusement and Shisui added to their amusement "Got to wonder have you and Sasuke-chan kissed to perhaps he was jealous when that happened between you and Itachi" the Uchiha sniggered.

Causing the girl to roll her eyes "No Sasuke and I have not kissed, he's like a little brother and it would feel wrong at this point, though he has had his first kiss and I know who it was" Sakura's lips curved upwards just thinking about it and she was ready to crack up laughing.

Everyone leaned forward and perked up their ears curiously "Just who was it that, that boy gave his first kiss to" Dan prodded lightly, dark green eyes focused on the young girl in their midst who really looked as if she was about to break down laughing crazily.

Kakashi shook his head, even he knew what had happened contrary to belief he had been right there watching the entire time "Naruto that knucklehead got up on Sasuke's desk and someone in the row below knocked his elbow into Naruto so it was completely accidental" she snickered.

Hashirama nodded sagely fighting down his own chuckles when his brother shot him a look to confirm the truth "Your being serious about that like really one hundred percent serious about that statement right" Nawaki gaped suddenly.

Sakura grinned "I thought Hinata was going to faint, she's one of our friends, who has a huge crush on Naruto and when that accident happened, her face turned beet red and I really thought she was going to pass out on Kiba and I" the pinkette exclaimed.

"Kiba who, is that who you gave your first kiss to" Tobirama commented trying to get the girl to confess who her first kiss had been, it was only fair so that all three members of Team Seven could be teased mercilessly.

At the question Kakashi turned sharply to his student onyx eye narrowed "Well Sakura did you give your first kiss to that Inuzuka boy or was it Haku like I originally thought" the Copy Ninja prodded of his student.

Her face turned red and Hashirama put a hand over his eyes "Actually neither, Kushina-chan kind of pushed me at Shino Aburame and we ended up you know" the emerald eyed girl admitted not embarrassed just exasperated.

"Shibi Aburame's son right, and that woman just pushed you at him" the pale blue haired male couldn't believe his ears things really were more different than he could have even imagined, especially when the young girl nodded.

Kakashi shook his head "Do you need help cleaning up your house, I remember you mentioning something about cleaning it" the older silver haired male offered suddenly and all eyes turned on to him "What such responsibilities shouldn't be left to one person" he stated with a shrug.

"Yeah and that was one huge place you had, though I think I'm going to explore" Nawaki vanished quick to avoid being roped into helping Sakura clean up her house if she did accept the revived Sakumo's offer.

She blinked at him in surprise "Plus there's the shopping you mentioned as well, come Anija I'd like to familiarize myself with the village once more" and then the Second and First Hokage were gone leaving very few on the training field.

"Later Sakura-chan you know where I'll be if you want someone to talk to and don't hesitate to ask for someone to stay with you tonight since you'll be alone" the brunette Hokage waved before he was out of hearing range.

Earning a thumbs up and a small smile "I think I'll go keep an eye on Nawaki so that he doesn't get into trouble" Dan hurried off in the next moment leaving Sakura alone with the two silver haired males.

The girl opened her mouth to speak "Look at the time I've got uh um something to do, you know where I'm at whenever you want to learn that lightning jutsu" Kakashi body flickered away to avoid being dragged into helping as well.

Disbelief clear in his obsidian irises "Only if you want to Sakumo-san" Sakura finally spoke realizing that he wouldn't relent, her sensei and his father were about as different as day and night as the man nodded.

"We should do the cleaning first, then shopping" Sakumo suggested sheepishly as they headed from the training grounds and down the streets to the civilian section of the village and to the Haruno House which definitely had massive appeal.

Before going in and got started on cleaning by the time it was lunch over half of the house had been finished thanks to a few water clones and a shadow clone mixed in there "Hmm" the pinkette hummed lightly as they sat down at the newly cleaned kitchen table for a homemade lunch.

Sakumo tilted his head in her direction "Is something the matter Sakura-san, you seem a little disturbed about something" the silver haired male inquired carefully in case there was something seriously bothering the young girl.

Her brow creased "Usually my parents leave a note to tell me that they've gone off on their usual trip, but I haven't seen it, then again Karin-chan could have it and I'll just have to find her later" Sakura said with a light shrug.

"True Sakura-san so I take it that young girl had been staying with you until just now" Sakumo questioned and Sakura nodded which prompted a round of chatter before lunch was done and the dishes were washed and put away.

Followed by the rest of the house being cleaned in the next hour then afterwards it was shopping for groceries it was down in the market that they stumbled across Karin "Oh Sakura-chan I meant to give this to you earlier" Karin jumped at the appearance of her friend.

Then turned and held out a note "Said they'd be going to Lightning Country and some of the surrounding towns to sell their wares and would be gone an extra week or so" the red head explained still looking the happiest Sakura had ever seen the girl.

"Guess that's, that then and Karin-chan thank you" Sakura smiled softly enveloping her friend in one of her bone crushing hugs which was returned with equal intensity from the Uzumaki girl, who'd finally found her place in this great big village known as Konoha.

Ruby met emerald, Sakumo stood back watching "I could never thank you enough Sakura-chan for everything you did for me and as much as I love Mebuki-san and Kizashi-san, kami Sakura-chan I have an actual family now with a brother and a mom and a dad" Karin cried.

Tears coursing down her cheeks "And you know what Karin you always will from now on have the family you always dreamed of having, now dry those tears okay and be happy" the pinkette bumped her hip against Karin's.

Making the girl laugh as she dutifully dried her tears though one could tell she'd been crying "Right see you later Sakura-chan and if you want me to stay the night just find me and I will" the red head waved hurrying off to her new home.

Sakura shook her head with a fond smile "That girl's been through a lot hasn't she" Sakumo spoke up in the resounding silence as she finished up with her shopping and sealed all the bags in a storage scroll to make it easier to carry them home.

"Yes a lot ranging from physical torture to mental, having her mother killed because of their ability and the Grass Shinobi purposefully told her that I was alive after that incident when we were eight, to keep her from doing anything and she was forced to fight me" Sakura shook her head again.

Looking outright angry for the abuse her friend had suffered "Well if you need anymore help Sakura-san just come find me, I'll be with Kakashi" the silver haired male offered again as they finished putting away the groceries and he left moments afterward.

Sakura blew out a breath, before heading to her bathroom to take a quick shower, once she was done she made dinner, ate, washed the dishes, checked through the house one last time setting up traps, shutting windows and locking them along with the doors before going to bed.

The next morning on the second day of her break a loud knock woke Sakura and after tying a robe around her form flew down the hall to the foyer and yanked open the door with a bleary glare it was only six in the morning and she wasn't happy to be woken so early.

"I heard from Naruto that you like to wake early obviously he was wrong pardon me I did not mean to wake you" Neji Hyuga was revealed to be the culprit and in his hand was a single purple hyacinth flower.

Mind waking up a little more "That's on missions I go to sleep and wake early, but I am on break and I haven't gotten to sleep in for over a month, is there something wrong" Sakura questioned missing the flower for the moment.

Neji took a deep breath before releasing it "You're words to me over these last few years you've been Hinata-sama's friends, I finally understand what you were trying to tell me, family is important and should be treasured, forgive me Sakura if you can find it in you to" the brunette apologized.

Emerald orbs widened in response especially when the flower she just now noticed was tucked behind her ear, Sakura opened her mouth to say something when she was soundly cut off, the teenager before her ducked his head down.

Pressed a light kiss to her cheek and then was gone before she could even tell him that she forgave him a long time ago, because Hinata had told her during that week before the Third Hokage's funeral how he had saved her from being taken.

"Damn Neji, always running off and not letting people talk" the pinkette snorted heading back to her bedroom to dress for the day since there was no way she'd be able to go back to sleep at that point and made breakfast.

That hyacinth flower still tucked behind her ear, even as she left the house a couple hours later and hurried down the streets to the Hyuga Compound "Was that Sakura-san" Minato asked as he saw a flash of pink sprint by him and his wife.

They were alone that morning as Naruto and Karin had decided to sleep in "Yeah it was and given the direction she's going, I'd say she was going to the Hyuga Compound, come on Minato" Kushina said then the both of them were off after the young girl.

Catching her as she came to a stop outside the Hyuga Compound gates "Ah Haruno-san good morning I take it your here to see Hinata-sama" the guard chatted it up with the pink haired girl as he pulled out the necessary documents that would admit the girl in.

"Actually no, I'll see Hinata-chan later, I'm actually looking for Neji, he came by at six this morning and there's something I have to say to him" the emerald eyed girl explained her reason for the visit.

Behind her Kushina grimaced "Uh oh that's not good, I really hope she doesn't punch that boy for whatever he said, we should tail her some more Minato, just to make sure nothing happens" the violet eyed woman suggested.

Minato raised a brow at his wife "Your so use to following her around everywhere I understand Kushina and yes we'll follow her as much as you want" the blonde chuckled lightly taking Kushina's hand with a kind knowing smile.

"Neji-kun huh, hmm I think he said something about training grounds fourteen and a solo training session" the Hyuga Guard commented when he finally remembered that Neji wasn't in the Compound and off somewhere on his own.

The young girl thanked him, turned on her heel and hurried off intent on speaking to Neji no matter what "Is that a flower behind her ear, oh kami did Neji seriously confess to Sakura-chan" Kushina finally spotted the flower.

Her husband blinked ocean blue eyes in response "It might be something entirely different Kushina, we should wait to see alright" Minato patted her hand as they came to a stop on the training grounds.

Where the Hyuga in question was waiting patiently "Figured you would come you can hit me whenever you'd like I deserve it after all for being the worst cousin in history" Neji kept his lavender orbs glued to the ground.

"Are you an idiot Neji, I forgave you a long time ago for that stunt you pulled during the Chunin Exams and nearly killing Hinata-chan and all those times you insulted her and belittled her, she told me you saved her and that is what told me you've changed" Sakura put a hand on her hip.

Waiting for the older boy to look at her, his head snapped up in response "Hinata-sama tells you everything doesn't she, guess I should have known, but why I thought you hated me" the brunette chuckled before turning serious.

Sakura let out a long suffering sigh "I never said I hated you Neji, I hated the way you treated Hinata, by the way do you even know what this flower means" the pinkette plucked the flower from behind her ear and held it up for him to see.

Neji shook his head "Do you know Kushina what that flower means" the Fourth Hokage prodded curiously obviously thinking that it was some kind of flower that meant a confession of some sorts, because he didn't have a clue about flower meanings.

Unfortunately neither did is wife "No only Sakura-chan would cause she's the one who studied like crazy we only taught her shinobi stuff not the girly stuff" the red haired woman explained with a wince.

"I wouldn't have a clue so why don't you tell me, I only picked it because girls like flowers and I thought it would maybe get you to not hit me" the Hyuga shrugged helplessly, he didn't want to get punched by her chakra enhanced punch and end up in the possible.

The thirteen year old Chunin Sakura Haruno sighed softly "Hyacinth Flower, a purple one means forgive me, kind of ironic that's what you came to ask for and then to give me this flower, anyway I meant what I said, I forgave you over a month and one week ago" the pink haired girl said.

To absolutely no ones surprise really "You can count on me Sakura-san I will treat Hinata-sama right from now on" Neji tilted his head in respect of the kunoichi, her skills weren't something to laugh about after all and then he was gone from the field.

"Again oh well at least he let me say what I wanted without running off when I got here" Sakura shook her head with a sigh and stowed the flower away in her pouch, turned on her heel and slammed right into the Fourth Hokage.

Her innate clumsiness coming to the fore as she hit the ground with a body jarring thud, while the man she rammed into didn't even freaking stumble, instead he chose to stare down at her amusement shining in his ocean blue eyes.

"Clumsy as ever huh Sakura-chan are you alright, you did hit the ground pretty hard that time and you even scraped up your elbow" Kushina frowned usually the girl was aware of her surroundings, then a sinking feeling formed in her guts was Sakura sick.

The concerns she had were waved off "I'm okay Kushina-chan and I'm sorry for running into you Lord Fourth" Sakura rose to her feet carefully, healed the scrape then apologized to the blonde before her, who creased his brow.

Before letting an easy going smile form on his lips "Not to worry Sakura-san and you can call me Minato, so long as you feel comfortable in doing so that is, are you sure your okay, that was quite the fall after all" Minato offered.

Sakura let a smile form on her lips it was hard not to smile "Positive Lo…Minato-san, I've been through a lot worse than falling down, Naruto tried to blow me up once by setting an exploding tag off in my face accidentally because he was curious" the pinkette giggled.

Kushina slapped a hand over her mouth and let infectious giggles in response "So totally remember that, followed by that other incident when he tried to make you apology ramen and set his hair on fire and it took him forever to stop pouting and giving you sad looks" the red haired exclaimed.

And Minato was content to just stand there and listen to the two females go on and on about Naruto "You know I'm glad he had such a wonderful friend like you Sakura-san to help guide him into the young man he is today" the blonde commented when the chatter finally died down.

Both females turned and beamed at him "That's cause I didn't give Sakura-chan any choice, plus it's impossible to ignore the puppy eyes" Kushina grinned from ear to ear, enjoying having her life back and being able to actually physically interact with people.

The quiet was broken moments later "Sakura-nee when did you get home from your mission" by a little voice followed by a body slamming into the pink haired Chunin and wrapping their arms around her neck.

"Hey Konohamaru, day and a half ago, was really busy yesterday and aren't you supposed to be in class right now at the academy" Sakura scolded lightly, she didn't have any room to talk, cause she use to skip half the time just to listen to lectures by the Third, with Naruto of course.

The little boy smiled innocently and gave her the dreaded puppy eyes "But Sakura-nee you were gone all month couldn't you come to the academy and help Iruka-sensei lecture us" Konohamaru pouted at her with hope in his dark blue eyes.

Sakura opened her mouth, then closed it "Oh alright, guess I'm going to go offer a bit of help to Iruka-sensei at the academy later Kushina-chan, Minato-san" she sighed in exasperation, not really minding and she knew she would enjoy her time.

Kushina shook her head in amusement "Good luck sometimes academy students can get pretty rowdy" Minato warned as the duo headed off and that's where Sakura stayed for the rest of the day clear up to when the academy let out.

Then she walked home with a smile on her face and straight into the kitchen only to nearly scream when she saw a person sitting at her kitchen table until she recognized him "Shikaku-sama you startled me" Sakura pressed a hand over her heart.

He raised his head from it's leaned position on his hand and straightened "My apologies Haruno-san, I didn't not mean to frighten you, I've been waiting for awhile as there are a few questions I'd like to ask you" Shikaku said lightly.

While giving her a calculating look, Sakura sat when he gestured for her to "Let me have it then Shikaku-sama, I'm just hazarding a guess but it's about those that were returned right and what was revealed" the pinkette clasped her hands before her taking this conversation seriously.

"Yes, just why were those two attached to you, how long had you been able to see them before they were revived, could you talk to them when they were spirits" the raven haired Jonin rattled off question after question and the girl blew out a breath.

Before answering each question "First question they don't know and since I was born and yes, they could also physically touch things by manifesting and use jutsu's if they really focused" the pink haired Chunin explained.

Shikaku narrowed his eyes mulling over what he'd just learned "Explains your high intelligence levels, one thing I don't understand is how did you manage to keep their presence a secret from others" the Nara Patriarch prodded.

It was the question she'd been waiting for actually "They taught me the importance of being discrete, secrets could mean another day alive and I guarded that one fiercely, even when at their suggestion I tell Naruto, I didn't because it was to dangerous" Sakura admitted.

"And Naruto would have blurted it out to the world endangering you and the entire Leaf Village if that knowledge had gotten into enemy hands and they wanted to use the two spirits attached to you to their own advantage" Shikaku nodded understanding the answer easily.

Sakura nodded herself "Yes, plus I didn't want to come off as crazy, I don't think hardly anyone would have believed me, when I was young my parents took me often to see a psychiatrist, who was a Yamanaka, and they couldn't see the memories I had of those two" she explained.

"Basically they were invisible to all but yourself, thank you for answering my questions Haruno-san, farewell" he stood and then was gone in a puff of smoke, Sakura sighed in relief, made dinner, cleaned up, took a shower and after dressing for bed went to sleep for the night.


	19. Unexpected Happenings

Upon waking up on the third morning back in the Leaf Village, Sakura felt as if there was going to be a change in the air and went about showering and dressing before making breakfast waiting patiently for whatever was going to happen.

In the meantime she finally sought out her sensei to learn a lightning jutsu "I expected to see you yesterday, Sasuke sulked the entire day because he wanted to talk to you" Kakashi peered down at his female student from his perch in the tree over the edge of his little orange book.

"That Konohamaru practically begged me to come help Iruka-sensei lecture him and the others so that's where I was all day with the exception of a couple hours and Sasuke knows how to use his senses, he could have come and seen me before I went to bed" Sakura lifted a pink brow in response.

Kakashi chuckled "Of course children adore you Sakura-chan, ready to learn that lightning jutsu" the silver haired nin jumped to the ground stowing his precious book away in his storage pouch and walking forward to stand in front of his little student.

How she'd grown into such a fine kunoichi so quickly kind of made him sad "Absolutely Kakashi-sensei" the pinkette exclaimed emerald orbs sparkling with excitement and the determination to do anything she put her mind to.

This earned her one of his famous crinkle smiles "Well then what to teach you, hmm Chidori…no I know here this one is called Raiton: Thunderbolt and these are the hand signs" the Copy Ninja instructed going through the hand signs at just the right speed for his female student.

Sakura watched closely before going through the hand signs herself "Tiger, Snake, Tiger, Bird, Tiger, Ram, Tiger, Raiton: Thunderbolt Jutsu" the pink haired Chunin molded chakra properly, extended her arms like her sensei had and unleashed her first lightning jutsu.

Which was less than impressive "Looks like you'll be practicing that one for awhile, what did you do speed through the training to learn lightning nature chakra" Kakashi chuckled, of course she would have, the girl was just so impatient sometimes.

Despite coming off as extremely patient "Yeah, I wanted Tsunade-shishou to take me on as her apprentice, maybe I should start with redoing that training in order to better understand it before practicing the lightning jutsu" Sakura mused.

Before sitting down piece of paper held precariously between her fingers to focus "Here you are Sakura, Tsuna-chan said something came for you from Cloud that's imperative you come to the Tower to read" Hashirama appeared suddenly breaking her concentration.

It was just the thing she was waiting for though as something sparked in her jade irises and followed after her former ghostly companion all the way to the Hokage Tower "Brought her just as you asked Tsuna-chan" the brunette nudged his little friend forward.

At the same time the woman behind the desk pointed to the lone chair in front of it "Sit Sakura, tell me why would a Cloud Shinobi be sending you a message, it hasn't been read yet, but are you trying to get yourself killed, Cloud and Leaf are not allies" Tsunade snapped.

Gesturing to the message scroll on her desk "I know that Tsunade-shishou and I've never met a single Cloud Shinobi in my life, however it could also be my parents sending the message, something must have happened and they got stuck there" the pinkette explained with a wince.

Tsunade blinked in response "Parents right, civilian merchants that travel, I suppose that does seem plausible, go ahead and read it then Sakura" the honey eyed blonde ordered in a tone that said no funny business or be punched out the window.

Sakura smiled lightly and grabbed the scroll, it was towards the end of the message that she understood what it was she was sensing that change in the air, her jaw dropped open and a glint of disbelief came to life in her viridian orbs.

"What is it Sakura-chan you look as if you were shocked by a lightning jutsu or something" the First Hokage prodded gently hoping that it wasn't bad news and that Kizashi and Mebuki were doing alright and not hurt.

The girl rubbed her eyes then stared hard at the message again "Brat say something already" the honey eyed woman ordered getting irritated and worried that something had happened to the girls parents, oh kami she hoped not.

Finally Sakura shook her head free of the cobwebs "Err I'm going to be a big sister to fraternal twins and they want me to come escort them home" the emerald eyed Chunin said after a couple more minutes.

Shocking the two in the office "Do you know how dangerous that is Sakura even being a Chunin if a member of the Akatsuki came after you, you wouldn't be able to protect yourself against them" Tsunade couldn't believe her ears.

"I know that Tsunade-shishou, their my parents though and this message tells me my mom is two months pregnant, the hospital is refusing to let them go unless someone comes to escort them" Sakura sighed rubbing her temples as a headache pounded through her skull.

Until reassuring hands were pressed to her shoulders "Kushina and I taught Sakura-chan the art of avoiding detection, she can travel across the lands under an illusion/chakra suppression tag" Hashirama admitted lightly.

Realizing there was no point in arguing Tsunade let out an irritated sigh "Very well then, this will probably take up the entirety of your break and then some, so consider this your second B Ranked Mission solo escort when you get back you'll have some time off" the pale blonde woman said.

Writing out a mission scroll then handed it over to her apprentice "Just be careful that's all we ask okay Sakura-chan and try not to let your temper get the best of you" the onyx eyed brunette warned nervously, the first mission without him or Kushina.

He had this terrible feeling that something was going to happen "Course Lord First, thank you Milady and I'll be back before you know it" the pinkette bowed and hurried from the office, back down the streets to her house.

Only to hurriedly pack, good thing she hadn't really emptied her pack from the month before and within twenty minutes she was ready to leave, Sakura inhaled deeply then released the breath before heading for the gates of the village.

After presenting the mission scroll to Izumo and Kotetsu she signed out and took four steps outside the village hesitantly before heading the rest of the way down the path confidently with her head held high.

Just as she was reaching the path that would lead her straight to the Land of Tea and subsequently the border of Lightning Country, someone jumped down next to her, her heart froze and she pulled out her tantou to defend herself.

"Bit jumpy are you, I was curious where are you off to obviously something's happened otherwise you wouldn't be heading out with a pack on your shoulders" it was Tobirama and after calming her heart she put away her tantou.

"My parents are stuck in Cloud Village, my mother is pregnant, the medics refuse to let them come home without an escort and yeah this will technically be my first mission alone, have to be ten times more alert" Sakura explained lightly.

Emerald orbs scanning the forest cautiously and ready to fight at a moments notice "Good and for Anija's sake don't let anything happen to yourself out there or he'll be depressed and unmanageable" the snowy haired male snorted.

The girl snickered lightly before straightening with the most serious expression she could muster "Understood Lord Second and I'll be back before anyone knows it" the pinkette saluted, Tobirama nodded and watched her literally vanish before his eyes making use of fuinjutsu.

Needless to say those six days of travel to Hidden Cloud were like hell on Sakura, what with nearly running into lower class rogues and bandits galore she finally reached the yellow gates and deactivated her tag.

What she wasn't expecting was to nearly be jabbed in the eye with a sword "State your business Leaf Dog or die where you stand" a voice ordered from in front of her, Sakura looked up into the light blue eyes of another blonde.

"Um my parents are here and they asked that I come escort them home, sorry for startling you, it's just I wanted to avoid the mess of trouble while out there which would have taken even longer" the pink haired Chunin explained.

Thankfully the sword was sheathed and the blonde stepped back guarding the gates denying her entrance essentially "I don't believe you in the least now leave, Leaf Shinobi aren't welcome in the Cloud Village" he waved his hands dismissively.

Sakura blew out a breath "You recently had two civilian visitors right, Kizashi and Mebuki Haruno, the woman is pregnant, that woman is my mother I am Sakura Haruno and six days ago I got this message from her, this is your symbol right" she presented the message scroll.

Doing her best in reigning in her temper as the man took the scroll and read through it "Still suspicious lets see your hand writing girl" the blonde commanded not kind in the least, not wanting to let her through, but what she said was the truth.

With a quiet sigh the girl sat and wrote in neater kanji than her parents then held it out to the Cloud Shinobi "I'm not here to cause trouble Sir, just want to bring my parents home" Sakura smiled lightly being as polite as possible.

"Fine and don't forget all visitors must announce their presence in the village to Raikage-sama, the Tower is there, conduct your business quickly and leave that's all" the blue eyed man relented finally and she was allowed to sign in.

Then she was hurrying quickly down the streets of the Cloud Village trying to avoid running into anyone or causing trouble until she reached the down, stated that she was a visitor and was following customs and was made to wait a full hour.

Before being allowed in to speak to the Raikage, her heart was literally in her stomach when laid eyes on the man for the first time in her life, he was huge, bulky with massive muscles and dark skinned like most occupants of the Cloud Village.

And he was glaring at her furiously with beetle black irises, hands clenched into fists on his desk "What business could a Leaf Shinobi have in my village, unless your new Hokage decided to send a treaty offer, which I point blank refuse to even consider" the Raikage snapped.

It was hard not to flinch at the harsh tone "No Sir, my parents came here and requested that I come to bring them home that's all Raikage-sama" the pinkette explained carefully speaking in a respectful tone of voice.

Just wishing she was already back home but unwilling to leave her parents in a village not their own, that's how far she'd go for them and her unborn siblings, the Raikage gave her a scowl that could rival her mentors "I'll believe that the day pigs fly" the man snorted.

She blinked and bit down harshly on her lip in order to prevent herself from saying anything out of line "Raikage-sama those two civilians are requesting a meeting with you again, shall I send them in" the door was opened before she could say something else.

To admit another blonde this time with onyx eyes and behind him were her parents "Oh good heavens Sakura you really came just like we asked" Mebuki rushed forward and swept her eldest child into her arms for a bone crushing hug.

"Yeah and now maybe she'll stop complaining ab…ow what was that for" Kizashi piped in trying to crack a joke only to get elbowed by his daughter, who shook her head indicating now wasn't the time for goofing off.

Especially as the tension in the office rose by several degree's "Tch suppose you weren't lying after all, it's late in the day, stay in the hotel or something but tomorrow morning I want you out of my village is that understood" the Raikage barked.

The girl bowed low "Of course Raikage-sama" Sakura nodded, then led her parents from the room and down the streets to the hotel she'd passed, rented two rooms and after eating a late dinner bedded down for the night.

And after breakfast the next morning and collecting their belongings from the hospital the three Haruno's soon to be five were headed for the yellow gates and signing out to begin the trek home to the Leaf Village.

That's where everything started going so, so wrong for her, they weren't more than five miles out when trouble caught up with her as it usually did in the form of a rogue "Hand over all your valuables and I won't have to kill the brat" he was tall with burly features, dark brown hair and black eyes.

He was also pointing a sword at them and his chakra signature gave off the distinct feeling of a rat "Mom, Dad turn away now, run and get in that tree, whatever you do don't look okay" the pinkette ordered unsheathing her tantou.

Unbeknownst to her, the Cloud Shinobi felt the chakra flare in the distance and with the Raikage in tow, his usual bodyguards were on their way to take care of the problem "Guess your going to die anyway brat just for challenging me" the rogue snarled.

Lunging blind to all else but the young girl that stood in his way, it was his first mistake as she drew back her arm and snapped her wrist to the earth shattering the ground beneath their feet "Doton: Earth Spike Wave" Sakura sped through the hand signs needed to her favorite earth jutsu.

From the earth raining down on them spikes formed and the rogue retreated hastily to avoid being impaled "Impossible your just a little brat how can you be that strong" the man was clearly even more furious than before.

Because he missed the arrival of the Raikage and his two body guards, his second mistake "Never underestimate someone younger than you, appearances can be deceiving" the emerald eyed girl said shifting into a defensive stance.

Infuriating the rogue even more still not noticing their audience as he snarled and charged sword held out hoping to land a hit, she was quick though with hand signs "Suiton: Raging Waves" a wave of water came speeding towards him.

Followed by the girl as she body flickered and just as her jutsu crashed into him, she landed a crushing kick to his spine that sent him flying forward and skid painfully across the earth on his face several meters away before coming to a stop.

The rogue was realizing he'd bite off more than he could chew with his current opponent, which led to him making his third and final mistake as he set his sights on the two civilians that had been his original targets.

And made one last foolish attack the girl saw instantly where he was headed, her body just moved, just as he reached the tree her parents were in, she body flickered in front of him, tantou held out at the ready and thrust her short blade out.

"D..Didn't think you ha..had it in you b..brat" her sword had made good purchase and had gone hilt deep, the man impaled on her tantou coughed up blood it splattered across her cheek as the light faded from his eyes.

She slid to the ground with the rogue as his body became nothing more than dead weight before pulling her tantou free of his chest "I hadn't meant to cause trouble you know, trouble likes to catch up with me all the time so you have my sincerest apologies Raikage-sama" Sakura spoke.

Turning in the man's direction and bowing low looking way to serious for a little girl regardless of being a shinobi or not her reaction definitely wasn't normal "You have blood on your face Kid" the younger dark skinned male commented smartly.

Unsure of what to really say because he was shocked, like his partner and no doubt the Raikage, she was a kid, Chunin sure by the vest she wore, but still young and yet she hadn't batted an eye at killing someone even if he had been attacking her.

At the statement Sakura reached into her medical pouch for a rag and wiped her face clean, "Are you injured anywhere" the blonde couldn't help but ask, regardless of his feelings, she was just a girl and shouldn't be left to suffer for something that wasn't her fault.

Plus she'd been her absolute politest the entire time even going so far as to reign in her parents "No, at least I don't think I am" the pinkette looked herself over critically before finally spotting the few nicks she'd received from the enemy nin's sword.

Without thought her hand glowed a brilliant green and she healed her wounds "That's the rogue that's been causing trouble everywhere lately, and you killed him just like that" the Raikage spoke suddenly and the girl gave a start in surprise.

Because she really had been expecting him to get angry and order her to hurry the hell up and leave his country "He went after my parents, them being harmed isn't something I will ever let happen" the emerald eyed girl stated lightly.

Finishing up with healing her cuts and prepared to head up the tree when a heavy hand landed on her shoulder and she nearly let out a scream managing to reign it in and crane her neck carefully to eye the culprit, it was the Raikage.

"Let me brat, then you'll come back to the village with me, got to commend you for getting rid a thorn in my people's side after all, don't expect any favors is that understood" the man ordered, helped the two civilians down from the tree they'd climbed in.

And then the lot of them hurried back to the Cloud Village, all the way to the Raikage Tower, she could admit she was extremely curious as to what he was going to do as the large man sat and started writing furiously on a message scroll.

"Cee send this off to the Leaf Village, Darui inform Atsui that he's in charge of escorting these two around I'm going to have a meeting with the Elders, once your done return and keep an eye on the girl" the Raikage barked out left and right.

Sending his men scrambling to do his bidding and soon enough she was all alone with only the younger dark skinned male for company "Got a name Kid" who was definitely not afraid to chat it up with her apparently.

"Yes it's Sakura Haruno and yours was Darui-san wasn't it, I admit I'm curious and have no idea what's going on" Sakura responded politely, not wanting to admit it but she was also scared had she done something she wasn't supposed to.

Hashirama had never taught her how handle this kind of situation "Sakura huh, that suits you, so that was some fight, you must be pretty strong in order to be able to create destruction like the Sannin, Tsunade Senju and yeah that's my name, by the way I wouldn't worry, we'll find out soon enough" Darui commented with a light shrug.

Sakura smiled sheepishly "True and she just took me on as an apprentice, though I could already utilize chakra enhanced strength and medical ninjutsu" the pinkette said unable to meet the guys gaze, Kushina had really messed with her brain on the guy subject.

Darui let a sly smile form on his lips "Medical ninjutsu huh and how long have you been able to do that Sakura" the white haired male scooted closer subtly deepening his voice trying to tease her a little and slung his arm over the back of the couch they were seated on.

Resting his hand lightly on her shoulder the reaction was instantaneous, she jumped and tried to flee he captured her wrist "Relax, relax I'm teasing ya Kid, don't be so serious about everything alright, or you'll never get a boyfriend" Darui chuckled.

She lowered herself back into her previous position "Just been through a lot is all and truthfully I haven't really been looking, but yeah medical ninjutsu and since I was eight" Sakura announced lightly managing to calm her heart down and will the blush from her cheeks away.

Darui tilted his head to the side in consideration "What exactly have you been through that would make you so serious about things or be to serious to not consider a little bit of romance" the dark skinned male leaned forward watching her expression closely.

Her features darkened including those viridian orbs "Nearly dying a couple of times puts your life into perspective when you're a child and a few other things, plus I don't have time for romance not with people threatening the lives of those I care about" the emerald eyed girl explained carefully.

"Okay you got me I get the first part of that but I don't understand the second part, why, don't you want a guy to love you or have a little summertime fling and have your first kiss or something" Darui raised a white brow.

The conversation at that point had just gotten extremely silly "I've already had my first kiss completely accidental and I'm not ready really, it's hard work keeping my teammates from dying left and right every time we go on a mission" Sakura shrugged herself this time.

Ebony irises narrowed "Tell me Sakura, what do you consider a kiss as, one on the cheek, the lips or tongue kissing" the white haired male questioned against his better judgment, he could admit the girl was cute, but did age bother her.

"Lips of course, though that's not so say I haven't been introduced to other types not by choice might I add" the pinkette rambled getting this sinking feeling in her gut and she subtly inched backwards on the couch.

He neared even closer and her heart skipped a beat in response "Does my age bother you Sakura, if it does I'll stop and we can just have a nice peaceful chat before Boss comes back" Darui asked waiting patiently.

At the question she paused "Not so much the age it's just the last time I was kissed it wasn't good in the least and I was forced into that situation" Sakura fidgeted emerald orbs glued to the floor of the office.

Finally admitting out loud to someone even if it wasn't Sasuke, that she had been massively bothered by what had happened between her and Itachi, he hadn't been gentle in the least and his tongue had been invasive.

Darui frowned "But I wouldn't be forcing you here, it's your choice and I'd keep it PG, cause I don't think your ready for such an adult kiss anyway" the dark skinned male chuckled trying to rile the girl up a little bit.

To help her get over her shyness, Sakura's head snapped up "I'll have you know I am not just a child Darui-san, haven't been for a long time" the pink haired girl huffed in exasperation as if she'd said that a million times to someone else.

It was the permission he'd been waiting for and without another second to waste leaned forward, reaching out with one of his hands to cup her cheek and brushed his lips against hers before pressing a little harder, being gentle of course.

And finally pulled back, her eyes were so wide he couldn't help but laugh a little "You know Sakura, you are supposed to close your eyes during a kiss" Darui pointed out, immediately her face turned beet red and she puffed her cheeks out at him like a child would when their pouting.

He couldn't help but think she was adorable and he couldn't resist kissing her again only this time on her puffed up cheek "Never going to have a normal life at this rate" Sakura sighed when he was back in his original spot.

There was nothing he could say to that because the life of a shinobi was never normal and she should have expected it instead he struck up another conversation, this time on a different topic that had her talking nonstop for nearly a full hour and a half.

Before the door was thrown open with a bang, her chatter cut off and Sakura stood quickly bowing low "Guess what brat you've got the honor of escorting my men and I across the land to your village for treaty negotiations" Ay scoffed.

Not understanding in the least why this little girl was so different than normal little girls "And I swear to make sure nothing happens Raikage-sama" and there she went again being way to serious, it was so freaking weird if he was being honest.

"We'll wait until a response from Leaf before setting out, so scram, explore do something that's not standing around in my office" the Raikage ordered sending the girl scrambling from his office, not that she would have dared argue with him in the first place.

Found her parents and spent some time with them before the headed for a restaurant to eat lunch only to turn around and explore some more, then it was back to the hotel for dinner and bed time after taking showers of course.

It was two and a half days later that the Raikage finally got the response from the Hokage in Leaf before they finally set out, this time in a much larger group of two civilians and four shinobi, three of which were from a different village.

Everything went well for a few days or so and they were nearing the border of Lightning that led into Tea when something finally went wrong, they came out of no where a large group of them, there was fifteen in all.

And in the lead of course was him "So this is where you wandered off to, I've been looking for you everywhere ever since you humiliated me almost three weeks ago" he strode forward glaring angrily at the youngest person there.

Her spine straightened and fury ignited in her emerald orbs "What the hell are Grass Shinobi doing all the way here in Lightning Country" Cee groaned obviously thinking it beneath him to fight other shinobi from a different village.

Viridian orbs turned in his direction "Looking for me Cee-san, to bad they aren't going to get me, you know what will happen if you try Kan" Sakura grabbed the sword she'd taken fair and square from the man before her and unsheathed it.

What happened next no one could have guessed would happen, the emerald eyed blonde let out a mighty roar "You, your the bastard who put his filthy hands on my daughter" Mebuki snarled becoming literally enraged at seeing her daughter's abductor as a child.

Then lunged and punched Kan straight in the face, it didn't matter that she was pregnant, all she was thinking was protecting her baby, her first child and nothing would stop her, Sakura's jaw dropped "Well now we know where you get your temper huh Sakura-chan" Kizashi chuckled.

Skin pale and watching as his wife beat up on a shinobi of all people, the others with him to shocked to try and help at that current moment, even the Cloud Shinobi and Raikage were shocked at the scene they were witnessing.

"Don't you ever come around my daughter again you hear or I'll march straight to the Grass Village and give the lot of you a scolding from hell" the emerald eyed blonde growled furiously as she finished up.

Sending the Grass Shinobi scrambling with their tails between their legs "That was interesting" Darui commented not daring to ask just what it was the man from Grass had done to incite the older woman's wrath like that.

No one else got that memo "What did she mean, put his filthy hands on you, what exactly did that man do to you brat" Ay had no such qualms about asking, Kizashi grimaced and hurried forward to walk with his wife.

"I'll be up here if you need me" the pale pink haired blue eyed male called leaving his daughter to explain what had happened and feeling horribly guilty for it already because if they'd just been paying better attention it wouldn't have happened.

Sakura blew out a breath "When I was eight that man took me from the village with one other girl and at her suggestion we tried to escape, it ended badly, nearly died, that's not the worst of it though, he took a kunai and well I'm no longer innocent" the pinkette explained.

Cee caught on instantly because he was a medic "He shoved a kunai inside of you that's insanity" the onyx eyed blonde burst out now understanding the vicious reaction the civilian woman had, had at the sight of the man who'd technically defiled her daughter.

The girl nodded seriously eyes forward unable to look at the expression of pity and Darui was feeling mighty guilty "Hell hath no fury like a pregnant woman though" the shaggy white haired male said trying to find another topic to speak about.

"Indeed, let us make haste I wish to avoid another encounter should someone else come after you" the Raikage urged them forward at a faster pace, that one even a civilian could match, he wasn't inconsiderate though, he did slow down every once in awhile.

Allowing the two civilians time to catch their breaths and not push the pregnant woman past her limits until finally three days later they were stood before the red wrought iron gates of the Hidden Leaf Village, which was a relief to the youngest person in the group as they headed for the Hokage Tower.

Halfway there someone came to a stop in front of them "We need to talk Sakura" Sasuke Uchiha, his arms were crossed over his chest and there was a glint of unreadable emotion in his obsidian orbs, and a scowl was formed partially on his lips.

Sakura sighed "Not right now Sasuke, I have to check in with Tsunade-shishou and make sure Raikage-sama and his escorts make it to the tower as well" she stated simply walking by her teammate hoping beyond hope that he wouldn't throw a tantrum.

No complaints reached her ears and she sighed inwardly in relief, six minutes later they were climbing the steps of the Hokage Tower and once inside they were led to the Hokage Office where the newly inducted Hokage was waiting for them.

Upon sighting her apprentice she stood and stalked forward "Kami you are the most insane girl ever brat" Tsunade crushed the girl in a hug, just glad that nothing had happened, it was hard admitting it, but Sakura had grown on her.

"Probably, that's more because of Lord First actually and maybe Kushina-chan, their personalities have rubbed off on me massively" Sakura smiled a cheeky smile and ducked as a hand shot out to whack her gently on the head.

Tsunade shook her head "Right then well done on escorting your parents home and for doing more, take three weeks off no exceptions and by the kami you better use this break or so help me our first training session I'll beat you into the ground" the honey eyed woman grumbled.

"Y..You got it Tsunade-shishou" the pinkette stuttered lightly handing over the mission scroll to her mentor, granted they hadn't had a training session together yet, but that's only because Tsunade was trying to get through what had built up in their month long absence.

So it would take awhile "As I told you, we're here to negotiate a treaty, Darui, Cee leave" Ay ordered sending his men scrambling after the young girl and her parents, immediately they both decided to just stick close to the girl.

And the next hour proved to be most amusing because right outside at the bottom of the steps that led up to the Hokage Tower was Sasuke "We'll meet you at home Sakura-chan" Kizashi patted his daughter on the back.

"Let us just hope the house is clean, that would be such a pain" Mebuki complained as they started walking away and Sakura stared at her teammate wondering what he wanted now, it had been over two weeks since they'd last had a chance to talk.

Darui and Cee were stood behind her "Why are you always going off to do things by yourself" the raven haired teen grumbled clearly jealous, Sakura rolled her eyes, so it was that kind of talk, perfect just exactly what she needed.

"Who's the Chunin here Sasuke or are you regretting informing the elders that I was one of the ones most deserving of the position" the pink haired girl snapped, hand on her hip and ready to let loose with another scolding if he so much as opened his mouth and said it was unfair.

Sasuke reeled back in response realizing he was treading on thin ice at that moment with his female teammate "I meant couldn't you have at least asked Kakashi-sensei to go with you or something or make it a team thing" the Uchiha groaned.

All the anger drained out of her at that "Sasuke there are somethings you don't understand, Kakashi-sensei would have been just fine but if you or kami forbid Naruto had come the situation could have turned and I couldn't chance anything happening to my parents" Sakura sighed.

Feeling exhausted now and ready for a good long nap maybe for a couple of days actually "Why, because your oh so smart, sure Sakura and what would have happened if there was someone you couldn't handle did you think about that, you could have seriously been hurt" Sasuke snapped.

An angry tick formed on her forehead and the two Cloud Shinobi pressed their lips together "You know what Sasuke don't lump me in with you, I'm not cocky to the point of being arrogant, I know my limits unlike you" the pinkette glared.

"Really then lets go a round, I've been training these last two weeks and if I beat you Sakura, you have to admit all your secrets to me" the Uchiha crossed his arms over his chest again glaring right back tired of being one upped.

Sakura pinched the bridge of her nose "Very well and if I win Sasuke you have to stop acting like such a child all the time, we are ninja not little kids it's time for you to stop seeing the world through rose tinted glasses" the emerald eyed girl stated.

Behind them "This will be interesting no doubt, wonder if she'll manage to beat him" Cee was curious, sure he knew that the girl had chakra enhanced strength up her sleeves, but judging by the crest on the boys back, he was an Uchiha and could probably beat her hands down.

"I have faith in the Kid, plus I don't think she wants to reveal that to him" Darui said as that secret came to mind, he didn't think the girl's teammates knew or at least one of them didn't, he didn't know the other one.

But they dutifully walked behind the two teens until they came to a training grounds "Fight me seriously Sakura and don't hold back, I'm going all out against you" Sasuke settled into a stance across from his teammate.

Who did the same "Idiot why are you doing this Sasuke, what are you trying to prove exactly" Sakura shook her head just feeling tired and waiting for her teammate to make the first move, he was impatient like that.

And not more than a minute later he was charging at her, sharingan activated and kunai held out "I'm trying to prove that you can't do everything on your own, ask for help sometime and it will be given" the raven haired teen growled.

"Yes because that always works out just fine doesn't it Sasuke, do you know how many times I begged Lord Third to find Karin-chan probably over a hundred and each time the lead came up dead" the pinkette snorted harshly.

Surprise flashed in obsidian irises just seconds later he was knocked clean on his back "What's the matter Sakura to afraid to hit me with your chakra enhanced strength" Sasuke taunted not liking that she was still holding back on him.

"Do you want to end up in the hospital Sasuke" Sakura asked in a flat tone of voice, that admittedly scared him and his heart skipped a beat in response, kami if she wanted she could have already killed him with a single punch, that was more terrifying than anything really.

It was then that it hit him he really was being such a child by acting like this, Sasuke paused "Why Sakura do you have to be so bloody weird, Shisui told me by the way what that Grass Shinobi did to you, how could you hide something like that from me" the Uchiha complained.

Sakura rolled her eyes "I'm not even going to answer that first question and I didn't exactly hide it Sasuke, Kakashi-sensei knew long before anyone because he was the one who found me and you never asked, I'm an open person and what happened doesn't bother me anymore" the Chunin snorted.

Much more lightly this time glad that she hadn't really had to exert any energy to fight, she would have probably lost "Are you sure it wasn't Itachi who did it, you were alone with him for about an hour after all" Sasuke rounded on his sole female teammate.

Onyx orbs intense "Pretty sure Sasuke, now if your done throwing a tantrum come over here" Sakura ordered, he didn't argue and came forward, once he was within range, glowing green hands were pressed to the cuts he'd been given courtesy of a tantou.

"You know your pretty good with that tantou have you considered switching to a sword any, I bet you'd be good at that to" Sasuke struck up a conversation while waiting to be finished healing, he got no answer only weight leaning into him.

Followed by quiet snoring even Cee was pretty shocked "If she was that tired why didn't she say something" the onyx eyed blonde shook his head undecided on what to do, he wouldn't know where the girl's house was.

"Because the girl is as stubborn as a mule, though she displays her village's pride proudly and her will of fire is strong" Tobirama strode forward having been watching the entire time and lifted the girl into his arms.

Sasuke frowned deeply "Your one of her teammates right, does the other one know about that you asked her about" the white haired male with dark skinned asked suddenly as Tobirama took Sakura home knowing where to go.

The Uchiha nodded in response "He was pretty angry, ever since we became teammates with one another we've learned a lot about her and that there isn't anything she wouldn't do to protect us" Sasuke sighed leaning heavily against a tree for a moment.

Trying to work through everything he knew about his sole female teammate "That's because Sakura-chan cares about us Teme no matter what you think she'll be there for us until she takes her dying breath" a blue eyed blonde sped onto the field.

On his heels was a girl with red eyes and red hair "Yeah because that's how selfless Sakura-chan is, regardless of whether she says it's her being selfish, it's just who she is" the girl exclaimed fondly of her first friend.

"I get it, I get it already geez Naruto, Karin and come next Chunin Exams we'll become Chunin together to reach her level" the raven haired teen vowed, he wouldn't allow for any less this time, after all the hard work and preparations Sakura had put in and done to get through.

The blonde grinned "Of course Teme together cause it does kind of suck getting left behind by Sakura-chan sometimes" Naruto sniggered, he wouldn't complain to her face about that though and he doubted she would be able to harm him.

"Exactly but that's cause Sakura-chan works very hard to accomplish her dream, which is protecting the future of the Leaf Village and the future of all it's inhabitants" Karin announced reciting her friends dream word for word.

Eventually the lot of them did split up and later on Darui and Cee met up with their Raikage "Did you learn anything about the girl" Ay demanded once they'd sat down to eat dinner later that evening before they were to go to bed.

"Plenty though none of it suspicious Raikage-sama, she's just a young girl who's been through quite a lot that's shaped her into the person we met today" Cee commented mulling over all he'd heard, not to mention the snippets of gossip he'd picked up on.

By his side his partner nodded "That girl has massive issues though and it makes me wonder what all else she's been through" Darui frowned trying to think up the many possibilities that would make a girl so serious she wouldn't even contemplate relaxing on her break.

Ay shrugged and they finished up eating before heading to bed, much like the girl they'd all be talking about, she was something else, that was something they could all agree on and after climbing into the hotel bed and fell asleep for the night.


	20. Going On A Trip Part 1

The next morning after breakfast Sakura headed from the house for a quick shopping trip because her mother had asked for a few things that she hadn't gotten "Well look who finally came back from her unexpected mission" like usual someone found her alone.

This time the culprit Shisui "Of course, I couldn't leave my parents there after all not when they asked I come get them regardless of being on break" Sakura snorted lightly scanning the stall before her for the requested food items.

And not finding them there so moved to another one the Uchiha on her heels "You could have asked someone else to go Sakura" Shisui scolded, not wanting to admit he'd been a little annoyed by Sasuke the entire time, his complaining could drive even the sanest person to insanity.

Emerald orbs flickered towards him "Not really, their my parents and my unborn siblings, plus it's not as if we were alone on our way back, your just miffed you had to put up with Sasuke the entire two and a half weeks I was gone" the pinkette smirked.

Shisui rolled his eyes "Fine you got me Sakura, kami does the complaining ever stop" the ebony haired male groaned looking utterly exhausted, granted his little cousin had been quiet last night perhaps he was finally growing up.

"I wouldn't know Shisui-san, though maybe after yesterday he'll finally stop throwing fits every time something happens" the emerald eyed girl laughed choosing a vine of the juiciest tomatoes she could find, followed by seasonings.

The Uchiha watched her closely "What are you getting there Sakura" Shisui asked trying to strike up a normal conversation with his cousin's sole female teammate, she was always busy he realized, never taking a break for herself.

She tilted her head in his direction "My mom requested ingredients for tomato soup and don't you dare tell Sasuke that or he'll come hounding her for some and he's liable to get a knife thrown at him, it's what she's craving" Sakura warned seriously.

Gulping Shisui nodded seriously "Understood Sakura, anyway I'm off got lots of things to do today" and then the Uchiha was gone leaving her to finish up shopping and return home to drop off the requested ingredients.

"Here you go Mom, if you need me I'll be at the Hyuga Compound visiting Hinata-chan, if I'm not there I'll probably be at the Inuzuka Compound" the rose haired girl waved with a smile intending on visiting her friends.

Perhaps later she'd write a few letters explaining what happened to Haku and Gaara, who both had been requesting she come visit and bring her teammates and friends "Have fun dear, just make sure you eat and take some money" Mebuki ushered her eldest child off with a worried smile.

It was nice, then Sakura was out the door on a straight path to the Hyuga Compound, halfway there once again someone was pacing alongside her "Good Morning Lord Second and thank you for last night" Sakura greeted politely catching sight of white hair and slightly familiar chakra.

"Guess Anija really did teach you proper manners, you told me you thought of him as a second father, yet I've never heard you call him anything but his title" Tobirama reached out to ruffle her growing pink locks lightly.

Not wanting to admit that he'd been worried but it appeared she was doing well that morning and perhaps she'd just been tired yesterday "Ah that's because I'm still a little shocked he's actually here, I'm sure it'll fade and I'll start calling him by name again" the pinkette smiled brightly.

Earning a chuckle and another pat on the head "The boy was pretty disgruntled when you fell asleep on him" the white haired male said suddenly realizing where they were going and knowing he had limited time probably to speak with the girl.

"Possibly I'll have to talk to him later, anyway have a good day Lord Second" Sakura bowed politely then turned and spoke to the guard before being let through to see her friend in the compound, who was thankfully in and not out training.

When the girl in question caught sight of her friend lavender orbs lit up "S..Sakura-chan yo..you came to visit, I..I thought I'd do..done something" Hinata exclaimed, with less stuttering than usual and came forward to hug her friend.

"Course not Hinata-chan, somethings came up and I'm getting little siblings, had to go all the way to cloud to bring my parents home" the fuscia haired girl grinned pulling Hinata into a bone crushing hug before they separated.

Hinata looked Sakura over carefully "Letting your hair grow out huh, it's almost back to it's original length" the blue haired girl smiled lightly and spoke without an ounce of stutter, Sakura's emerald orbs rounded in surprise.

And her jaw dropped open "W..Wow Hinata-chan I'm proud of you" the emerald eyed chunin couldn't resist pulling her friend into another hug, it must have taken a lot of hard work to build up that confidence and she was proud of Hinata.

"Th..Thank you Sakura-chan, I've also started training more and learning a few things from Neji-ni when he's not off on missions himself" the Hyuga Heiress chattered gesturing to the table where a tray was set up.

Signaling the girl had known she would be coming to visit "Good, good I've learned quite a bit myself, fire and lightning nature chakra, my medical ninjutsu has improved a little bit as well" Sakura chattered right back.

Waiting patiently until a cup of tea was placed in front of her before taking a sip "So F..Father told me th..the village is going to h..hold a festival to p..properly inaugurate Lady Hokage and that the kunoichi wi..will be required to dance" Hinata said after taking a sip of her tea.

At that Sakura nearly spewed her own "That's bad I can't dance to save my life, that's why Kushina-chan, Naruto's mom stopped trying to teach me because I'm dead clumsy sometimes" the pinkette stated eyes wide in horror.

"It might not e..even happen Sakura-chan, l..let's just enjoy today to..together okay" the blue haired heiress tried to assure her friend knowing exactly how clumsy the girl opposite her actually was and that dancing was definitely not something she'd be able to learn in time for such a festival.

Despite her efforts though Sakura left hours later still worried about having to dance and royally bungling it "Gonna go visit Kiba, later Hinata-chan" the girl with fuscia colored hair and jade orbs waved heading out the door, Hinata sighed and cleaned up.

Sakura was still lost in her worried thoughts as she headed on a straight path to the Inuzuka Compound, her feet leading her because it was so ingrained in her to go there sometimes, though it had been awhile.

Partway there semi-familiar arms wrapped around her shoulders "Been looking for you all morning Kid" Darui's voice filled her ears, Sakura craned her neck to spy the man as he released her with a chuckle.

"Was visiting a friend that I haven't gotten to see for awhile since we've all been rather busy Darui-san" Sakura explained lightly shoving her worries to the side for the moment but continuing to walk in the direction she'd been going.

Darui raised a brow in response "It looks like your off to visit another one what about lunch aren't you going to eat first" Cee scowled from behind his partner, worried that the girl wasn't eating enough and that she was going to get sick on them.

"Yep that's right and Tsume-sama will feed me, that woman says I'm to thin, I just eat healthy and all she eats is meat for the most part" the pink haired girl giggled doing a marvelous job of hiding her worries as she immersed herself into conversation.

That lasted for all of five minutes until Darui had to bloody mention the festival again "Guess what we heard Kid, there's some sort of inauguration festival going on and the kunoichi of your generation have to dance" the white haired male smirked.

Just as her smile dropped off her face "Oh kami I'm so gonna mess up I'm dead clumsy" the pinkette pressed her hands to her face in horror looking the most depressed anyone had ever seen her including the Cloud Shinobi.

"How can you be clumsy when you fight rather gracefully" the onyx eyed blonde frowned in confusion, the girl was an odd one for sure and a walking contradiction to several people including himself and his partner.

Emerald orbs shot his way "Innate clumsiness not even Kushina-chan could break me out of it, simply put I suck at dancing and I'll humiliate myself just trying" Sakura sighed resigning herself to this fact, if there was no getting out of it.

The two Cloud Shinobi were surprised "Well your rather blunt and honest with your shortcomings, I'm sure it won't be that bad so good luck Kid" Darui bit back his smile clapping the girl on the back and turned to hurry off.

"Indeed good luck Sakura-san" Cee nodded following after his partner, he caught up with the man just in time to hear Darui start chuckling, that poor girl just couldn't catch a break it seemed, they felt for her, but there was little they could do.

Meanwhile Sakura continued on her way to the Inuzuka Compound "If it isn't the pink stray been a long time since you've come to visit, my boy was getting mighty sulky" Tsume was the one to answer the door and let out a boisterous laugh at the sight of her.

"Sorry Tsume-sama just got home yesterday and decided to visit, is Kiba out back training with Akamaru" Sakura locked gazes with the woman after bowing politely as was expected of her since the woman was the Matriarch of the Inuzuka Clan.

Tsume blinked "Not quite that pup of Kiba's is hiding from Hana, it's time for his annual shots, so their out in the forest looking for him, I was just about to join them, want to tag along stray" the mahogany haired wild woman offered.

Sakura's eyes lit up and she shoved her worries to the side yet again this time determined to ignore them for awhile "Absolutely Tsume-sama it's been a long time since we've played the find Akamaru game" the pinkette grinned.

"Climb on Kuromaru then stray just like old times, we're going to go fast so you better hang on tight" the Inuzuka Matriarch laughed jerking her thumb at her ninken, who came forward and lowered himself a little for the young girl to climb on.

No further instructions were needed and just like that the three of them were off flying through the forest and the tree tops "You hanging on there alright pup" Kuromaru rumbled feeling her, but unsure of how she was doing.

"Yes Kuromaru-san I remember very well so no worries" Sakura laughed fully enjoying herself and the fresh air as they ran, her hair billowing out behind her, emerald orbs bright and most of all having fun like she hadn't for a good long while.

Kuromaru barked out a laugh "Then let us go even faster, you are no longer a child" the ninken rumbled pushing himself past speeds unknown, her grip tightened but it didn't hurt and she held fast to him as they ran.

Even going so far as to pass his partner with how fast they were going and the woman shook her head but allowed the two to have their fun until it came to an end as they dropped down beside Hana and Kiba.

"Give a guy a warning damn it kami Sakura you scared the crap out of me" Kiba jumped a foot in the air at the sight of them, hand pressed over his heart and eyes wide in fright, making the girl burst out laughing.

Off to the side his older sister looked seriously amused by his antics "Ignore him Sakura-san, he's just a little put out we haven't been able to find Akamaru yet" Hana snickered, though she would admit that she was getting a little frustrated herself.

"Let me try Akamaru if you come take your shot like a good boy I'll make you homemade treats for a week" Sakura called cupping her hands over her mouth so her voice would carry even further in hopes of reaching the young pup's ears.

They only had to wait for ten minutes before the white pup sped into the area they were in and jump straight into Sakura's arms "Well we should have got you first before trying" the brunette teen sulked eyeing his ninken sourly.

Of course he came for a girl, the very same girl who pampered him like a normal pup, but also made sure he was in the best of health, Sakura smiled innocently scratching Akamaru behind the ears, knowing exactly where the ninken liked it.

"Spoiled pup, I hope you intend on delivering on your promise right" the slightly older Kunoichi asked as they started their trek to the vet clinic so that Akamaru could be given his shot without fear of him running off and hiding again.

Sakura nodded "I never break a promise Hana-san you know the kind of person I am" the pinkette smiled lightly keeping a reassuring hold on Akamaru as he started shaking and let her soothing chakra seep into him to help him calm down.

Moments later Akamaru relaxed, he was set on the table and given his shot "There let's hope we don't have to do this again six months later" Tsume snorted, with that she and Kuromaru turned on their heels and headed back to the house.

"Go on now Kiba, take Akamaru with you, I have some things to do" Hana shooed her little brother off and his friend didn't even need to be told as they hurried from the clinic and towards their secret hideaway on the compound.

Which was basically the kennels to play with the younger pups there that would probably turn into regular dogs if they got to much older and didn't bond with an Inuzuka child soon "So what brings you here Sakura" Kiba asked once they'd sat down on the ground in the kennels.

Puppies crawling all over them demanding attention "Just wanted to visit, it's been awhile and since the end of the Chunin Exams I've been doubly busy and don't want you to think I'm neglecting our friendship" Sakura rattled off with ease.

Kiba chuckled in response "You in a nutshell Sakura and nah Kurenai-sensei told us that since you're a chunin more would be expected of you and that you'd be busy as all hell" Kiba shrugged lightly leaning back on his hands and getting comfortable.

"As much as I don't want to admit it that's all true I feel like I've been run ragged, though I don't intend on doing anything but relaxing the next three weeks maybe" Sakura pursed her lips remembering the inauguration festival she'd been told about.

If she didn't start practicing dancing now, she'd make a fool out of her Shishou "Heard about the festival then and what you have to do" the Inuzuka Heir guessed easily what was eating at his friend and she nodded.

"Only because I suck at dancing and don't want to make Tsunade-shishou look bad by messing up, she'd be a laughing stock and it would be all my fault" the pinkette groaned her worries spilling out like a torrent.

He struggled not to laugh he really did but a couple of sniggers eventually slipped through "Don't pressure yourself so much Sakura, besides according to my Ma, the inauguration festival isn't until a few good months from now" the brunette explained.

Almost instantly her shoulders relaxed and the tension in her facial muscles faded "Bet you didn't know Kiba, Tsunade-sama took me on as her second apprentice" Sakura grinned holding a persistent pup in her arms when he refused to stop tugging on her hair after climbing her shoulder.

The boy choked on air in the next second "When the hell did that happen, man we've missed out on a lot that's happened since you got promoted you lucky girl, you and that lazy Shikamaru" Kiba sulked, his friend got all the luck.

Sakura let out peels of laughter in response "Awhile back, a few days before we brought Tsunade-sama home actually, she made a bet with me that if I could master lightning nature chakra in a week she'd take me on as her apprentice and I did" the fuscia haired girl exclaimed.

Tickling a puppy off to the side on the belly when he rolled over giving her those puppy eyes of his, the two of them sat there talking for another hour or so before inevitably her stomach started growling "Sounds like your hungry come on Ma will feed you" the brunette teen stood.

Dusting his pants off and with that they trekked back to the Inuzuka Main Family House for a late lunch "Right thanks Tsume-sama and I'll be by tomorrow with the promised treats Akamaru, so later" Sakura waved.

"You take care now pink stray and make sure you eat some more, your way to thin" Tsume rolled her eyes as the girl hurried off and moments later she was back out in the main part of the village wandering the streets aimlessly unsure of what to do now.

As much as she loved training, she didn't want to do that for at least a week or so, there was always going to visit more of her friends but moments to herself were so rare, in the end Sakura decided to head to the Hokage Stone Face Mountain.

Sit on the Second Hokage's Head and read one of her books on advanced fuinjutsu unaware of the looming danger until it was to late "So you are the brat that has been causing Orochimaru-sama so much problems" a voice spoke from behind her.

Just as a sweet tune filled the air that could only come from a flute an illusion formed before her eyes and she was bound by wire, pain like never before sprouted along her body and she knew that she'd been hit by a fire jutsu.

It was enough to break her out of the genjutsu though, Sakura only caught a glimpse of her attackers and the headbands they sported before being punched right off the cliff knowing she wouldn't be conscious for much longer, she let out a scream.

A scream that Hashirama knew all to well and before Tobirama could ask what was going on his brother was gone something had happened and knowing it was best to follow Tobirama hurried after his brother's speeding chakra.

They body flickered halfway across the village and arrived just in time to see Sakura plummeting towards the earth "Sakura-chan" Hashirama lunged catching the girl in the nick of time, seeing the countless injuries she sported including the multiple burns.

"What the devil is go…what happened" Tsunade was quick to arrive on scene minutes later the Raikage on her heels only to freeze at the sight of the injured pinkette, no one the wiser of the intruders in their village.

Hashirama shook his head "I don't know, heard her scream, there's no way I couldn't recognize it after all, if I hadn't caught her she'd be dead" the mahogany haired male looked positively murderous someone precious to him had been hurt again and he wouldn't stand for it.

Not more than a second later Sakura regained consciousness "I..Intruders from the S..Sound Village again they caught me off guard used some kind of gen..genjutsu on me I could..couldn't break out of" Sakura gasped out struggling to breathe.

"Why the hell did you try to take them on yourself you stupid brat, why not come to get someone" Ay growled furiously, what the hell was the damn girl trying to prove by fighting off intruders by herself it was ridiculous.

For the first time he'd known her she got angry with him as blazing jade orbs shot his way "I..I did not try to fig..fight them Ra..Raikage-sama th..they caught me guard and I did..didn't even have a chance to defend myself b..before I was being punched o..off the cliff" she spat.

Ay reeled back in surprise "Your not even safe in your own village, that's a little messed up kami" Tobirama shook his head not sure what to think of the recent turn of events, never mind that there were intruders, they'd purposefully went after one of their own.

"Do you know why they attacked you specifically Sakura" the honey eyed blonde prodded suddenly wanting to get some sort of information before healing her apprentice and making her go home for the rest of the day.

Sakura nodded carefully with a wince as agony wracked her body "O..Orochimaru's a l..little furious wi..with me because I keep int..interfering with hi..his plans to d..destroy the Le..Leaf Village" the pinkette explained.

"But that last time wasn't you it was me god damn it I'm really going to strangle that fucking Orochimaru" Tsunade snarled hands glowing green to heal the girl being held in her grandfather's arms, so gently it made her wonder.

In response Sakura shook her head "I was there though Tsunade-shishou, not only that during the Chunin Exams I swayed Gaara from his side to ours before the fight even began, not only that I kept him from getting his filthy fangs in Sasuke" she ticked off her fingers.

"The hell, that's all kinds of messed up Sakura-san, why on earth would that man want your teammate for" the Second Hokage frowned not liking what he was hearing, the more said, the more concerned he grew for the girl's safety.

Emerald orbs turned his way "Sasuke possesses the Sharingan, he wants that, to take over Sasuke's body, I prevented that when we were in the Forest of Death, by actively avoiding area's that held no security in them so he couldn't catch us and give Sasuke the curse mark" Sakura admitted.

Tsunade groaned "Okay listen up brat go home, get some rest and let us handle the intruders if their still hanging around you hear" the woman barked sending her second apprentice scrambling once Hashirama set her down.

And she did go home indeed only to vanish into her room and set up various traps because now she was paranoid, there was no way she'd be able to relax or rest not with people out trying to off her in the Hidden Leaf Village.

It wasn't until around midnight after eating a late supper did something happen, she'd just dozed off when she felt her bed dip "Psst Sakura" Shisui's familiar voice filled her ears from right beside her head and her eyes snapped open.

To peer deep into ebony irises "What is it Shisui-san has something happened to Sasuke, Naruto" Sakura outright panicked only to have a hand pressed over her mouth and those ebony orbs to spark with amusement.

"Nothing like that, we all heard and I wanted to make sure you were alright to assure Sasuke-chan that you were okay as well" the Uchiha murmured quietly "By the way you went a little overboard on the traps" he pointed.

Sakura scowled "Did I, apparently I didn't do enough if someone still got past them" the pinkette huffed unhappily once again wide awake and now she probably wouldn't be able to go to sleep at all the rest of the night for fear of someone coming into her room.

A little surprised that she was so paranoid "Guess you do have worries" Shisui hummed softly leaning closer trapping her between him and her bed wondering how she'd react or if she would tel him all her worries.

Clearly she knew what he was doing and the scowl deepened "Of course I have worries Shisui-san, like how I'm going to suck dancing at the inauguration festival, how I'm going to keep Naruto, Sasuke and Karin safe and the Leaf Village and now this" Sakura said.

"Listen Sakura I understand your worries I truly do and I know that things have been unfair to you, right now there's an anbu out there keeping watch so you don't have to fear, he wouldn't let anything happen to you" the raven haired male whispered.

His breath washed over her ruffling her lashes as she realized exactly how close Shisui was to her, her cheeks chose that moment to flush red and her heart sped up a little "R..Right" the fuscia haired girl stuttered lightly.

Praying that he hadn't noticed but of course her luck was shot to all hell when a smirk spread across his lips "Is little Sakura-chan embarrassed at how close I am" Shisui chuckled lightly in a teasing way, her blush darkened.

Especially as he leaned more over her nose to nose now, her eyes widened "N..No you Uchiha's th..think your all that" Sakura grumbled trying to look angry but doing a piss poor job of it as her pulse raised even more.

When he cupped her cheek gently with one of his large rough calloused hands it was game over for her "Really now I see the curiosity Sakura-chan, there's an irresistible charm we Uchiha's have and once you kiss one you can never go back" the Uchiha commented quietly.

"Yeah well I didn't have much of a choice in kissing Itachi, I didn't want Sasuke getting hurt and that was the last thing I expected he would do" the rose haired girl scowled only to jump when his other hand joined the first one on the other side of her face.

Obsidian locked with emerald "Just tell me no Sakura-chan that's all you have to do and I'll back off, will never touch you again like this, like Itachi did" Shisui said searching for any sign that she didn't want this.

There was a flicker of uncertainty and a little fear, Itachi had scared her badly with whatever he'd done "I…I do..don't know okay" Sakura gasped quietly lips trembling and tears welling in her emerald orbs only to slid down her cheeks.

Shisui knew that his friend had done something that had scared her away from guys "Sakura-chan what did Itachi do to you beyond kissing you" he leaned back sensing it would be wise for the moment and wiping her eyes free of tears.

But they just kept coming "They were following us, Jiraiya-sama, Naruto and I, had intended on taking out Orochimaru, I knew but didn't say anything, it was two weeks before we found Tsunade-sama" she began.

And he got the feeling whatever she was going to say wasn't going to be good in the least "Go on Sakura, I'm listening okay and I promise not to tell Sasuke" the Uchiha assured knowing that this was probably something Sasuke didn't need to know about.

It would be their little secret "He flared his chakra, he saw Haku kiss me and wanted to know who my first kiss was and how many guys had kissed me, he startled me pretty bad and then gave me a lecture about how he could have done something much worse, it spooked me" the pinkette finished.

He blinked "Well that's not really what I was expecting, though he's right Sakura, if you let every new guy you meet kiss you it could develop into something more and you'd be seriously hurt regardless of no longer having your hymen, your still a virgin" Shisui explained seriously.

Trying not to scare her anymore than his friend had, he was sure there was still some good in Itachi, otherwise Sakura wouldn't be there and alive "I know that already Shisui-san, just didn't expect to get a lecture from rogues of all people you know" Sakura sighed finally relaxing.

Onyx orbs softened and a smile quirked his lips upwards, that was Itachi, caring, awkward yet kind even as a rogue it seemed "Do you feel better Sakura-chan" Shisui inquired resuming his previous position.

In response she bit her lip trying to work through what she felt before nodding "Thanks Shisui-san, that's one worry off my shoulders, only a billion to get through" the rose haired girl laughed sheepishly knowing she was only delaying the inevitable.

Their eyes locked once again and Shisui drew nearer, lips practically brushing against hers "All you have to do is say no" the Uchiha reminded waiting for any sign, a blush rose to her cheeks, warming his hands that was all the answer he needed.

As he pressed his lips to hers molding them together a soft little gasp came from her mouth that was swallowed by his own as he pressed harder, deepening the kiss, without becoming to invasive, her hands rose and let her fingers curl into his shirt in a white knuckled grip.

He was actually surprised that she hadn't pulled away, poor thing was just so confused and he knew he had to stop, he pulled away slowly letting her calm down as the kiss ended "D..Did I do something wrong" Sakura frowned.

"No Sakura-chan you were good, try to get some rest alright and I promise to keep everything that you told me and what happened here a secret" Shisui leaned back and stood properly, Sakura blinked tired emerald eyes at him and watched him body flicker away before falling into a restful sleep.

Unlike how she thought, Sakura woke up feeling refreshed and ready to face the day with her usual determination and perhaps she'd even fit in a little dance practice, there was absolutely no way she was going to mess up at the inauguration festival.

So after breakfast in which she'd made at her mothers request, she traipsed from the house and to her team training grounds "Good heavens Sakura-chan are you alright" only to be swept up in the arms of Kushina Uzumaki, who'd probably been worried out of her mind since yesterday.

Her smile softened "I'm alright Kushina-chan, Tsunade-shishou healed all the injuries and I feel better than ever, in fact um…." Sakura trailed off for a moment to Minato's amusement "Would you teach me how to dance properly" she finally blurted.

Kushina blinked her violet orbs in response before slapping a hand over her mouth as laughter spilled forth from her lips "Oh Sakura-chan you hopeless girl you" the crimson haired woman giggled, while Sakura grimaced.

Waiting patiently "Pardon me right I assume that's about the whole dancing at the inauguration festival in a couple months time" Kushina questioned and got a nod "So of course, I meant to ask yesterday but then Hashirama-san told us what happened" she sighed.

"Thanks Kushina-chan and I know I might not be able to pull this off very well the least I can do is try and that's what I intend" the pinkette announced emerald orbs burning with unveiled passion and desire to do her best.

Violet orbs softened in response and Kushina couldn't resist pulling the girl, who'd nearly been to hell and back a few times since before the beginning of her shinobi career, into a motherly hug "Let's start then Sakura-chan" the red haired woman clapped her hands.

Showing a few steps to Sakura to start off the lesson "Are you sure your up to that, after what happened yesterday especially" the two Cloud Shinobi walked onto the training field in the next moment and saw the session.

That slowed to a halt in the next moment "I'm sure Cee-san, besides I suck at dancing and the only way to get better is practice, can't practice if I'm holed up in my room" Sakura pointed out retrying the steps she'd just been taught.

Only to trip quite literally over her feet and nearly face plant on the ground if it weren't for Minato, who'd foreseen the end result and she felt face first into his jonin vest instead "Clumsy indeed" Minato shook his head in light amusement.

As she jerked back smiling sheepishly "Wait a second you weren't kidding about being clumsy Kid" Darui gaped having seen her trip with his own two eyes, he hadn't thought she could get any weirder than what he'd witnessed so far, yet she had.

Her brows rose up before returning to their original position "Course not Darui-san, though sometimes my clumsiness can be blamed on Kushina-chan, she often liked to push me" Sakura snickered and ducked under the whack.

"You really are something else Sakura-chan" Kushina rolled her eyes with an exasperated huff, while Sakura merely smiled innocently dodging the second whack with a laugh, having learned from Hashirama's mistakes to always duck where Kushina was involved.

Minato chuckled again watching the interactions between his wife and the young girl as they immersed themselves into the dance lesson a few moments later, while simultaneously keeping an eye out for any trouble that might pop up.

He definitely didn't want a repeat of the day before, where Sakura had been attacked right in their village, a second later Sakura fell again, yes the poor girl was horribly clumsy and he wondered why, it was certainly odd.

Eventually the lesson ended and Sakura sat "Did you already practice that Sakura-chan" the Uzumaki woman saw what she was doing as she held a piece of paper between her fingers trying to crinkle it with her lightning nature.

Sakura paused "Yes, but I did speed right through the training, so I haven't actually grasped the true concept of lightning natured chakra, hence why I'm redoing the training to master it" a logical answer was the response from the pinkette.

"That's a good nature to pair with your water nature, come to think of it you also have earth nature chakra as well, not bad for a Chunin I suppose" Cee commented watching closely as the edges of the paper began wrinkling slowly.

It appeared she didn't truly have the concept down "Uh try all five natures, Sakura-chan's the crazy one who learned all five for us" Naruto sped onto the field carrying a whole bunch of things in his arms "You got to help me wrap a gift for Hinata-chan" he pleaded of his friend.

Who sighed knowing it would be impossible to concentration "Okay, okay Naruto, you don't have to beg me you know" Sakura laughed softly emerald orbs softening as a gentle smile curved her lips upwards.

Behind them Darui choked as what Naruto said registered in his brain a few minutes afterwards "All five chakra natures but that's insanity" the dark skinned male with white shaggy hair couldn't believe his ears.

"Maybe but you'll learn there is very little I won't do for Naruto, Sasuke, Karin and the rest of our friends" the pinkette announced neatly folding some wrapping paper slowly so that Naruto could try his hand in the next moment.

Off to the side Kushina and Minato watched until the gift was wrapped "Thanks Sakura-chan and I promise to actually give it to her this time" the blonde grinned sheepishly collecting all that he'd brought with him before speeding from the training field.

She snorted lightly in amusement "Such a knucklehead that Naruto" Sakura shook her head, then resumed her previous task of remastering lightning nature, by noon she thought she had the concept of it down at the very least anyway.

And decided to take a break for the rest of the day, so went to stand only to come nose to nose with "Gaara when did you get here, are Temari and Kankuro with you, I'm sorry I did mean to come visit" she rambled while simultaneously hugging her friend.

His arms came up to wind around her waist before they pulled apart "Just a little while ago, yes they came here with me and I know, got your letter halfway here, we actually came to hopefully convince you, Naruto, Sasuke and Karin to come visit Sand" Gaara said in a hopeful tone.

Peering up at her since she had about an inch over him, with his pale green orbs "What a good idea it will get you four out of the village for a week or two and keep you lot out of trouble" Kakashi appeared on the training grounds in a swirl of leaves.

Just as his sole female student had been opening her mouth to say the same exact thing, so directed her emerald orbs onto her sensei and huffed at him in exasperation "Of course you'll need an escort unless Baki-san came along with you Gaara-kun" the silver haired nin asked.

Gaara straightened "Baki-sensei came along as well, though they'll need an escort back I assume" the red head nodded, pleased that his friends would finally get to come visit the Hidden Sand Village, his home.

Darui and Cee shared a look and opened their mouths to offer to be the escort when the blonde off to the side jumped in "You don't have to worry about their safety Kakashi, I'll escort them myself" Minato stated seriously.

A lone onyx eye shot his way "I know you were going to Cee-san, Darui-san, but your Raikage said no, I actually asked before hand, since Kankuro-san caught me" Kakashi explained reaching out to ruffle his students hair.

Only to have his hand batted away "Guess we're going to Hidden Sand, have you already told Naruto, Karin and Sasuke" Sakura grinned it would be the perfect place to relax and perhaps even get a tan.

Kakashi chuckled "Packing at this very moment so you best hurry off to do the same Sakura-chan" the Copy Ninja said nudging her off and an hour later with Temari, Kankuro, Baki and Minato in tow the lot of them were off to the Hidden Sand Village.


End file.
